Dark Birth
by Willow-Pea
Summary: Penny is fighting to survive in a world where she trusts no one, while protecting her younger sister Grace. When Hector comes into her life, she is forced to depend on him. After all, she is his lifemate.
1. Prologue: Hector

The Dark Series and its characters are the property of Christine Feehan. I'm glad that these characters have gotten a positive response from you guys, and I'm even happier to be writing about them.

Dark Birth

Prologue

"_Grief teaches the steadiest minds to waver."_

_- Sophocles_

* * *

_Hector_

_1400, Carpathian Mountains_

Day turned into night. A full moon bathed the countryside with a luminous light that paralleled the sun.

But everyone was uneasy. Human and Carpathian alike, eager and scared all at the same time. The Turks were vicious warriors, slaying men, women, and children without prejudice to age or gender. Without _pity_ to age or gender.

Something had to be done.

Hector Lacuna came upon his father quickly, waiting patiently for the ancient warrior to finish conversing with another ancient. The moment the other Carpathian male departed, he stepped closer. "I want to fight, _Isa_."

Alcyone Lacuna didn't start at his only son's unexpected arrival. He calmly turned to face him. "You will not, Hector."

Fury and frustration snapped through Hector like a whip. He gritted his teeth and clenched his fists. But, he kept his voice calm. "I'm a child no more, _Isa_. I will fight at your side. At the side of our Prince!"

Alcyone tried very hard not to sigh. He calmly swept his long black hair into a ponytail before he approached Hector. "True, you are not a child any longer, Hector. But, you are not a warrior, either."

"I—"

"_Hector_," Alcyone interrupted sternly. Dark hazel eyes stared into his son's lighter hazel. They were now the same height, but Alcyone knew how to exercise his natural authority. "You are fifty years old, though your body shows a man _half_ that age. You are a skilled fighter, but you are not ready for a task as daunting as this. We are not fighting vampires or slayers. We are fighting an entire army. We are coming to the aid of the human villagers, who have been so accommodating to us all these years. This will be no simple battle, my son. Many, many people are going to die on both sides. We will need all the help we can get, but I forbid you to join in battle when I know you are not ready."

"_Isa_." Hector allowed himself to calm down. He could see and sense Alcyone's very blatant concern over this situation. His father was always such a calm person, and for him to be worried at such a critical time was unnerving. "I want to help."

"You _will_ help me greatly, Hector, by watching your mother and sister and keeping civilians away from the fighting."

Hector snorted in disgust and frustration. His head bent, and his dark hair fell around his face. "That's _women's_ work."

"Then think of it this way," Alcyone offered. "I leave your sister in your care. Be her bodyguard in this very important time. Guard her with your life, Hector, as all females are so important to us."

Such a designation _did_ sit better with Hector. But he couldn't articulate _why _Alcyone's words had a sting to them. "…All right, _Isa_," he said finally, raising his head to look at his father.

"Don't misconstrue me," Alcyone said, sensing his son's feelings immediately. He put a hand on Hector's shoulder. "I may speak highly of Fatima, but I hold you very preciously as well. You are my son, Hector, my only son. You have honor and strength, and though you are brash you are in control. You've never done anything to disgrace me. I have seen the behaviors of many of our youths your age, and it can be deplorable, and they aren't even close to turning into vampires! I am so proud you are my son."

The gratitude to such praise took Hector's breath away, and he almost felt tears sting his eyes. But his pride came to him just as quickly, and the tears were gone. "Thank you, _Isa_. I don't like it, but if you would rather I guard my sister instead of fighting, I will take this task to heart. Nothing will happen to Fatima so long as I'm alive."

Alcyone found his smile then, and patted Hector's shoulder firmly. "I know I can trust you."

* * *

"_Emä_, where is Fatima?" Hector asked as he stepped through threshold of the house. "It's nearly time to go to ground."

Jacynta Lacuna looked up at her son's arrival and smiled. "She's on the back porch, Hector."

Hector looked at his mother closely, and saw that her smile was trembling. "Are you all right, _Emä_?"

"Of course I am," Jacynta said, though she now dropped her smile. "Never you mind over me, Hector."

Hector couldn't keep up pretenses, either. Tension had mounted to frightening proportions all throughout the night. Information gathered by the Carpathians themselves said the Turks were supposed to attack the area late in the night. Dawn was approaching, though, and they'd seen no signs of the enemy. It was unnerving to everyone involved, especially since the information had been extracted from the minds of those closest to the army generals.

But it was even more unnerving that they hadn't _found_ these generals at all.

Hector tried not to think about it as he walked onto the back porch. His eyes rested upon the little body curled on the top porch step, facing the dark horizon. "Fatima?"

His little sister shifted slightly, but didn't turn around. Despite his worry, he managed a small smile and ruffled her short black hair as he took a seat next to her. "Don't worry, Fatima. _Isa_ has faith in the Prince and we will surely get through this."

Fatima was still just a child. Unlike Hector, she looked every bit her age at six years old. For Jacynta to have produced a female child, in conjunction with the Prince's lifemate Sarantha giving birth to Noelle, when so many of their babies were mysteriously dying or coming out as male, Fatima was seen as a blessing.

And, even with her young age she had an incredible sense of awareness. "Hector?" she said quietly.

"What is it?" he slid an arm around her tiny shoulders. She sounded so scared and uncertain that he naturally wanted to comfort her.

"Will they really kill Olivia?"

Hector stiffened. He wasn't expecting this question at all. "I…don't think so, _csitri_. She _is _a woman, after all."

"But didn't the Prince send Doromene after her?"

"I…" Hector trailed off grimly. He found it odd that Fatima worried over such an insignificant matter in the face of their very apparent threat, but he excused her lack of foresight for her age.

However, it wasn't surprising that Fatima worried for Olivia. Olivia Shasarazade was of a respected lineage, but unfortunately caused quite a stir of trouble with her recklessness. Doromene Vercera's son Chiwen had come forth to claim she was his lifemate. A claim that Olivia vehemently denied, but one the warriors and even the Prince were bound to force upon her.

So she left without a word. And Chiwen couldn't find her _at all_. And apparently his grief at losing her was so extreme that he walked into the dawn. And though Prince Vlad wanted her found for questioning, he assigned Chiwen's own father as in charge of her investigation. Was there any doubt what Doromene would do when he found Olivia?

"Don't worry about Olivia," he reassured her, mostly because he didn't want to think about it. Olivia was always such a nice girl, and Fatima was fond of her. But he knew that the Carpathian woman stood little chance against a father grieving for his only son…his only _child_. "I believe she will be okay. But never mind about that, we must think of ourselves now."

Fatima gave Hector a sideways glance. "Are we in trouble?"

"We might be," he said. "But don't worry. We're strong people, Fatima. They can't hurt us the same way they hurt humans."

"But we can't go out during the day."

"No, we can't. But it'll take more than a couple of vicious soldiers to stop us. We're helping the people of the area because these soldiers are hurting them. We can't allow this to continue more."

Fear filled her dark hazel eyes. "Will you fight too?"

"No, _csitri_." He stroked a hand over her cheek, her face dwarfed in his large hand. "No, my duty is to protect you."

"Protect me? But I'm not hurt."

"No, you're not. And I intend to keep it this way."

The fear started to ebb from her young eyes, and she even managed to smile. "I trust you, Hector. I know you'll protect me from them."

Hector smiled in return and pulled her into his arms. It was a struggle to remain brave when everything was so uncertain. "I'm here, Fatima. You'll need to go to ground with me tonight, and I know you haven't done that before. But it's the only way I can truly protect you."

"It's all right. I'm not afraid." Her hands burrowed into his shirt. "Can I say goodnight to _Emä_?"

"Of course." He let her go, and watched her run into the house for a brief moment before he stood up and followed her.

Jacynta pulled Fatima into her lap and rocked her gently, singing soothingly to her. "I'm taking her to ground with me, _Emä_. Would you like to go to ground with us?"

Jacynta shook her head, though her eyes glistened as she looked up at Hector. "My place is where it's always been; at your _isa's_ side. I will go to ground with him."

"But—"

"Do not worry over us, Hector. Concentrate on yourself, on Fatima, and keep safe. We'll get through this. I know we will."

"Yes…" even as the word came out, Hector couldn't ignore the tight feeling in his chest. He wanted to be optimistic about this. They were Carpathians; stronger than the strongest human. But they weren't invincible. They bled just like humans, died just like humans. Anything could happen when the attack came.

* * *

"_HELP, HELP! I NEED HELP!"_

"_GET ME OUT!"_

"_IT __**HURTS!**__"_

Hector's eyes snapped open. One hand flew up to cover an ear, but that didn't stop the screaming. A quick check of his senses told him that it was high noon.

Their weakest hour.

"_HELP ME! OH, PLEASE SOMEBODY HELP ME!"_

Air returned to his lungs, but he was still in the ground. All around him, people were screaming in their resting places and even above ground.

Above ground…oh dear GOD!

Hector panicked and clutched for Fatima. But the little girl was still fast asleep on top of him, oblivious to the chaos.

Then he heard it. The ominous sound of a shovel piercing dirt. He understood fully the reasoning for the screaming around him. They were being _dug out_!

The sound was now as overpowering as the screams. He could hear them, above them on the surface, digging into every track of land, trying to get to them. By the horrified and agonizing screams resonating in his head, he knew that many Carpathians had been found, and were being bodily dragged out, into the unforgiving sun.

The sound of digging suddenly became distinctive right over their resting place. He clung to Fatima tightly and concentrated. He tried to block out the shoveling, the screaming, and melded their two bodies into the dirt. They began to sink lower, away from the offending shovels and from the monsters who would do this to them. Deeper and deeper he guided Fatima and himself to the diamond cave that rested not too far below. Soft murmuring flooded over his concentration, and he was aware that other Carpathians were doing the same thing. But not too many of them.

They found the cave and Hector guided them to the cavern floor. They weren't too far away from the mouth of the cave, which unfortunately led straight out near their village. He adjusted Fatima into a sitting position and gently shook her. "Fatima! _Sisar_, I need you to wake up!"

Fatima's eyes flew open. "Brot—" her eyes widened with horror, and he knew she was now aware of the screaming. "W-What? What's going on?"

"Shh, don't cry," he soothed her with assurances he didn't even feel. "We're all right. They came for us, but we escaped them _csitri_."

Tears welled up in her eyes anyways and she looked up and down the cave. Though others were descending towards them, at the moment they were alone. "_Isa _and _Emä_…where are they?"

"They're coming," Hector said, though chills were wreaking his system. He was suddenly taken off-guard by a gnawing emptiness that gripped his heart. Fear lanced through him and it was with great difficulty that he remained calm exteriorly. "So is everyone else. But I'll need you to stay here for me."

"Don't leave me all alone!" she wailed, grabbing his arm.

"No, no, I'm not leaving you. I'm just going up to the house very quickly. _Isa_ is coming, but I'll make sure he is." He stroked her cheek with an unsteady hand. "I'll be back in five minutes. Don't you move from this spot, you hear me?"

Tears had spilled onto her cheeks and he took the time to wipe them away. But, she nodded as she sniffled a little. "Okay. I'll stay right here, Hector. Get _Isa_ and _Emä _quickly, okay?"

Hector smiled. "I will, Fatima." He kissed her on the forehead and ascended back up through the ceiling, through the dirt. The screaming hadn't ceased at all; it only seemed to increase more and more. He resurfaced in his family's cellar. He could smell burning wood, and realized that his family home, one Alcyone had built himself, was on fire.

It was daylight. He could die in an instant when the sun touched him. But he was afraid. Fear guided him as he raced up the cellar stairs and into the main portion of the house. He had to find his parents. He had to do _something_.

He took three steps into the main area before he saw Jacynta.

He stopped dead in his tracks, despite the burning walls, burning ceiling, and gaped in horror. Jacynta, his mother, his wonderfully sweet and soft-spoken mother…she was dead. She lay sprawled on her back in the middle of the floor, her blood everywhere. A massive wooden stake was sticking out of her chest. Her eyes, her mouth were open wide, frozen in pain and horror.

Hector dropped to his knees beside her, reaching for her. Only then did he hear a soft, keeling wail. Only then did he see Alcyone. His father was alive, though he looked seriously injured. He was kneeling on the floor, clutching his head and rocking back at forth. The wailing was coming from him.

Hector's throat dried in an instant, knowing that his father had lost his lifemate…and the consequences that lay with them. "_Isa_—"

"No…" this word came from Alcyone in between the wailing. "No, no, no, no…Please no…"

"_I-Isa_," Hector sputtered, crawling over to him. The heat of the flames consuming their house was overpowering him. Alcyone didn't even seem to notice. "_Isa_, please—"

Alcyone's head shot up and he looked at Hector with wide eyes. "Why are you here, Hector? Get away from here as quickly as possible!"

"The cave is safe for now," Hector said pleadingly. He reached for his father. "_Isa_, hurry and come with me! We—"

"_No_." Alcyone shook his head furiously. "Jacynta is lost to me; her soul left before I could save her. I-I-I cannot—you need to leave, Hector."

"_Isa_," Hector said, feeling tears sting his eyes. "What will you—"

"LEAVE!" Alcyone roared. Hector jumped back suddenly. His father's dark eyes were flashing with red. "The butchers who slaughtered your _emä _are coming back! I will murder all of them! But I do not have much time!"

"_Isa…_" Hector was horrified. The darkness was closing in on Alcyone quickly, and without Jacynta there to sustain him, not even Hector could keep him at bay. "_Isa…_"

"A few more moments and I won't be able to differentiate between friend and foe!" Alcyone hissed. The red held there for a moment, before his eyes darkened once more. "I will KILL you Hector if you do not leave! Now GO! Take Fatima away from here!"

Hector remembered his young sister, and that gave him the incentive to leave. He wanted to say something to his father, though. He wanted to hug him, or clasp his arm in a warrior's salute.

But words were failing him. The life he knew was crumbling all around him. "_I-Isa_…I love you!" It was the best he could do for Alcyone.

Alcyone jerked out a nod. "I know, Hector. Now go! _Now_!" he shoved at Hector, just as the both of them heard a crowd outside the burning house.

Hector knew what Alcyone would do. He was on the verge of turning, and was accepting his death. But he was going to take as many as these monsters with him as possible. Hector didn't look back as he ran back to the cellar, and Alcyone turned to face his death.

Hector closed his eyes, and tried to close his mind. But he couldn't escape the carnage going on around him. He couldn't escape the power of the emptiness inside of his heart…emptiness instilled in him with the death of his mother.

He reached the cave, and found the cavern filled with a scatter of Carpathians. Several of them were young hunters, but he saw some children. He went over to the spot he'd left Fatima, trying not to think about Alcyone. "Fatima—"

His voice died, and his heart gave a lurch. Fatima wasn't there.

"Fatima?" he shouted, looking up and down the length of the cave, at the grief-stricken faces. He couldn't see his little sister anywhere. "_FATIMA_!"

He ran through the cavern, searching through little cubby holes, behind rocks, in the small groups of children. But Fatima wasn't with them. She didn't seem to be _anywhere_ inside the cave! "Fatima! Fatima, where are you? Please, come out!"

He'd told her to stay put. Why would she suddenly leave? Unless…

Panic overtook him. He grabbed the nearest child and hoisted them up by their collar. "Where is Fatima? Have you seen her?"

"I-I don't know!" It was a boy with golden eyes and golden hair. Hector knew him to be one of the Savage twins, but such a thing didn't matter to him at the moment. "T-There's so many people coming and going down here!"

Hector dropped the boy unceremoniously on the ground and continued his search. "Fatima! Answer me!"

"Wait!" a female ran up to him, her eyes filled with fright. "Fatima…do you mean the little girl who was over there?" she pointed to the wall Hector had left her at.

"Where did she go?" he demanded, but fear was consuming him.

"There was a woman…Carpathian, maybe. She grabbed all of the children who'd first arrived down here and fled the cave! She'd said it wasn't safe in here, but it's not safe outside either!"

Outside…Fatima was _outside_, in the sun! Children could last in the sun longer than adults, but she was out there, without protection…and it was _Hector_ who'd left her like that.

He turned towards the mouth of the cave and ran. He didn't care that the noon sun would kill him. All that mattered was Fatima, and that she lived. He'd failed…but he would save her.

But fate wasn't kind to Hector. Right at the entrance of the cave a shadow fell over him, and a warrior blocked his path. "Stop."

"My sister is out there!" he shouted, trying to bypass the warrior. But the other male stopped him effortlessly. "I must help her!"

"You won't help her rushing off to your death. Death tolls as it is are tremendous." Several people started wailing at these words, but the warrior continued, his dark eyes on Hector. "Nobody will pass through, no matter what the reason. I won't allow it."

Hector was beyond reasoning. The emptiness inside of him was threatening to consume him—Alcyone must have surely died. He had to do _something_! "Try and stop me!"

He tried once more to run around the warrior. A hand grabbed his forearm and a fist connected with the back of his head. He briefly saw stars before the world turned black.

* * *

Night had fallen by the time Hector opened his eyes and was awake again. His body was sore all over. As he slowly sat up, he was aware of one thing; _grief_.

Horribly, hysterical crying echoed into the cavern and up and down the countryside, inside of his head. He was alone in the cave. The warrior who'd knocked him unconscious was gone. He slowly rose to his feet, fear and…_loss_ eating away at him. Oh, the loss…grief, it made him nauseas. What had happened?

Hector rose up through the soil to reach his house. He came upon his cellar in broken, burnt splinters. He had to dig himself out of the mess that was his father's house. He found Jacynta's body again, but now in addition to the stake in her heart the flames had burned her corpse. She was barely recognizable, but Hector knew it was her.

He had no strength for tears. He carefully gathered Jacynta into his arms and pulled her free from the wreckage of the house. That was when he saw Alcyone. His father's body was unrecognizable, but he knew it was him. It was charred and riddled with broken weaponry. But…all around him there was a massive pile of dead bodies. Dead _human_ bodies. He'd done what he'd sought to do; take as many of these bastards with him as he could.

He laid Jacynta down beside her lifemate—Hector would bury them together later. He looked out over his village, and tears stun his eyes. Nothing was left standing. Every house, every building…they were all burnt to the ground. His insides twisted up at the scatter of Carpathians either huddled on the ground weeping uncontrollably, or wandering around aimlessly in the midst of this horrible massacre.

"The Prince is **DEAD**!" someone shrieked.

"We are lost! This is the end!" another wailed.

"Makeeda! I cannot sense my lifemate!" it was a warrior, and he was looking around with such fright that others shied away from him. "Where is she? _WHERE IS SHE_?"

A knot of panic formed in Hector. He count barely two dozen survivors, and most of them were young boys. Was that all that was left? Was _everyone else_ dead?

"Fatima." The name breathed out of him like a gasp. He climbed to his feet and stumbled into the town square. Charred, bloodied bodies were strewn everywhere. Men, women, children…everyone was killed indiscriminately, and very violently. The fear began to spread in him, and he picked up the pace. "Fatima…Fatima…" he didn't have the strength to shout.

That was when he saw it; a makeshift scaffold on the outskirts of town. "**No**."

Hector ran towards this horrible thing. Several bodies were hung from it, all various sizes. Even children had been hung from it. As he got closer he smelled that horrible stench of burnt flesh; oh, these souls had suffered the worst. They'd been hung from their necks and set on fire. As if that weren't enough, stakes had been shoved into their chests. What was the human mind that could conjure such horrible things?

But…he was close. He knew many of these burnt faces. And…

"_Fatima_."

_She_ was there. This sweet six-year-old child, and her tiny body had been strung up in this line. Reflexively, Hector grabbed at her body and ripped the cord hanging from her neck, and pulled the stake out that was bigger than her chest. He hugged her to him, as if trying to will her to breathe. He slowly sank to the ground, crushing Fatima against him, trying and failing to remain calm.

_No…no…please, __**no**__…_

Fatima wasn't breathing. Her soul had already left, and her beautiful face, her beautiful smile, and her eyes…they had no life.

"_Nothing will happen to Fatima so long as I'm alive."_

But Hector lived…and Fatima didn't. He abandoned her, broke his promise, and now…_She_ had no life. She was dead…she was dead.

Hector began screaming all of a sudden, and he clung to Fatima's body for dear life. He buried his face into her dark hair, what was left of it, and wailed with raw grief. The pain was so great…it was too much. Alcyone was dead, Jacynta was dead…Fatima was dead. He had nothing.

He had _NOTHING_.

Blood tears were spilling free, dropping into Fatima's hair, and Hector clung to her tighter as he wailed louder. But his cries were lost amidst the overflowing of grief and hopelessness that consumed everyone around him.

That consumed their entire race.

* * *

_Present Day_

Hector was nervous. He was void of emotions, but he remembered anxiety all too well. And now…now he felt it as strongly as the darkness continually calling to him.

There were a dozen unclaimed males in the room, each of them looking as anxious as he. They all had very good reason to be anxious…now if only Tariq would come.

There was a 'swoosh' of air, and the ancient Tariq Asenguard materialized in the room. His bright blue eyes met each warrior present, though none of them could see the color. "I have them."

He had an armful of cassette tapes, and a piece of paper in his hand. He slapped the paper onto the table as the tapes spilled out beside them. All of the warriors surged forward to see the names on the list, but Tariq spoke up. "Hold on. This will take a great deal of time, and it is unrealistic for all of us to simply sit here and listen to every single tape." He held up one for example. "Most of these are 'interrogation' tapes, and so there's likelihood that the victim on the tape is dead."

"I don't care," one of the males snapped. "I'll go without feeding if I must, but I will listen to every single tape you brought us!"

"It is still unlikely that _any_ of your lifemates are on this tape or on this list," Tariq reminded them. "It will be difficult, but _don't_ get your hopes up."

One of the men, Mathaias, snatched up the list and his two brothers, Lojos and Tomas, crowded around him. Hector wanted to see the list too, but something felt odd in him. His eyes were on the cassette tape Tariq held up. The moment the ancient had picked it up, it held Hector's attention.

"May I see that?" he asked, holding out a hand to Tariq.

Tariq handed over the tape and Hector looked at it. The title was simple, and the date was marked for eight years ago: **'McCormick 2: Bianca, M.'**

Bianca. It was a beautiful name, and yet nothing was invoked in Hector at the sight of the name. Yet…something. Something was stirring deep inside him for some reason. "Tariq," he said aloud. "Can we listen to this tape first?"

"Of course," Tariq said, taking the tape back. He read the date and frowned. "Hector, this is clearly an interrogation tape, and nearly a decade old. This poor woman is probably dead."

"I still want to listen to it," Hector said firmly.

Tariq sighed heavily, but nodded. "Everyone, quiet. We're going to listen to this tape first."

Hector had thought he'd been prepared for anything. But the sheer brutality a human being could commit stunned him. Particularly since the victim was a woman. It was an interrogation in the most animalistic sense. The woman, Bianca, screamed more than spoke, and oftentimes the men who tortured her laughed at her.

He was sickened. But something in him prevented him from plugging his ears.

"I think this is enough," Tariq said, after Bianca let loose another scream. "I think we can assume this woman is no longer alive."

"Wait," Hector said, raising a hand. "Please, wait a moment."

"You _want _to listen to this?" Andre demanded, turning hard eyes upon Hector.

"_Please…" _Bianca's pain-filled pleading voice resonated through the room. _"My baby…don't…"_

"_Baby_?" Mathaias roared. "These butchers tortured a woman _with child_?"

"Turn it off!" Tomas yelled. "I don't want to hear any more!"

"Just wait!" Hector yelled, though he didn't know what compelled him to listen to this garbage. "Wait a little while more!"

"No!" Tariq snapped. "I will not listen to these monsters murder a pregnant woman! You might take some perverse pleasure in this, Hector, but the rest of us won't!"

Horror gripped Hector and he slowly sat back down. Was that it? Was he compelled to listen out of _enjoyment_? Was he turning vampire? No…no, he _hated _this! He hated to hear this woman in pain, knowing her unborn child was being killed as well!

But…_something _was driving him. He _had _to finish this!

"_She's here!" _a new voice announced.

"_Well, well, Bianca." _This man led the interrogation. Hector found he hated this man more than anything. _"You will not help us, even to save your baby. Maybe __**Penny**__ will give us the answers we need?"_

A chill shook Hector. _Penny?_ It was a very simple name, and yet fear consumed him. The thought of these men torturing Bianca's daughter horrified him as much as the tape itself.

"_Penny knows nothing!" _Bianca shrieked, though her voice was raw and choked, as though with her own blood. _"Please, just leave her alone! She's only eightee—PENNY! PENNY, GET AWAY FROM HERE! __**RUN!**__"_

"Tariq, turn this off!" Andre snapped, jumping to his feet. "If you won't, I will!"

Bianca screamed her daughter's name a few more times, and Hector felt bile rise higher in his throat at the unmistakable sound of stabbing.

Then…everything changed. Andre's finger was right over the 'stop' button when gunshots ripped through the tape. Men screamed, Bianca screamed, but the guns were much louder. Everyone stood, watching the tape in horror, now everyone morbidly curious as to what might happen.

"…_I'll kill her!" _the leader suddenly yelled. _"I'll kill your mother, Penny! Drop the gun if you want her to live!"_

"_Penny…Penny…" _Bianca's voice sounded so horrible. There was little doubt the poor woman was on the verge of death.

"_I told you to drop the gun, you stupid bitch!" _the man yelled. Hector realized his cohorts were all dead; and the gunshots had been a gunfight between these butchers and Penny, who was trying to save her mother's life. _"I'll blow a hole through her head! It'll be your fault! DROP THE GUN!"_

"_Penny…run…"_

"_I'll give you to the count of three and then I'll blow this bitch to hell! One!"_

There was a long pause. _"Two!"_

Suddenly, there was a new voice. And it shook Hector to his core. _"I won't miss."_

"_Thr—"_

_BANG!_

There were several thuds, but no more gunshots. Then, there was a single thud. _"MOM! Mama! Hang on, I'm com—"_

The tape ran out. Hector blinked several times, and raised a hand to his chest. Three words, just three simple words. Something…no. His world was still in gray.

But…something. For a brief moment, a yellow light flashed over the gray with those three words. With that young, scared voice that struggled to sound so brave. That one girl…

Hector surged forward, brushing past Tariq and ripping the tape from the player. He reread the title. The poor woman's name was Bianca McCormick. The girl who saved her was called Penny.

Penny McCormick.

Was she alive? She killed a room full of men to save her pregnant mother. Oh, she was so brave! But this tape…it was eight years old. How could her mother and she possibly evade the Morrison Center this whole time? And the baby…was he or she okay? Did they survive the torture?

"…Hector," Tariq said shortly.

Hector spun around. "Where is she?"

The other males stared blankly at him. Tariq merely shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. She's an American, that's for certain. According to the logs, that tape was recorded in Eastport, Maine. But—"

"I'll start there, then." he shoved the tape into his pocket and started for the door.

"Hector, wait a moment." Tariq grabbed his arm. "What are you doing?"

"She's alive. She _has _to be." Hector looked at him. "I _know_ she's alive."

"_Who _is alive?" Tariq snapped. "Bianca McCormick was thirty-nine at the time they recorded this tape! You heard what they did to her! The chances she lived through it are incredibly slim!"

"Maybe," Hector said tersely. "But _Penny_ is alive."

"Penny?" Tomas lifted the list and looked at it. "Yes, she's listed right here. The whole McCormick family is listed here. Both Bianca and her husband, Landen, are listed as deceased. Penny's status as listed as unknown, and…" he squinted at the list. "Grace?"

"Grace?" Hector asked.

"There's someone named Grace listed with the family, status also unknown."

"…The baby?" Hector wondered aloud. He shook his head. "No. No baby could survive _that_…"

"Hector," Tariq said quietly. "Is this Penny your lifemate?"

"…I don't know," he admitted. "My colors are not restored to me by her voice. But…I felt _something_."

"She was only eighteen at the time of that recording," someone else said. "If she's alive now, she's twenty-six. Maybe she was too young then?"

"Eighteen is too young?" another asked. "What do you call Skyler? She invoked Dimitri's colors at _sixteen_."

"Skyler was abused her whole life though, and that ages a person," another said. "Perhaps this Penny reached sexual maturity a little late?"

"Maybe she isn't his lifemate at all!" another snapped. "Maybe he's _faking _it!"

"I'm NOT faking it!" Hector roared, waving the tape in his fist. "I felt something when I heard her voice! It isn't a whole lot, but I'm _not_ letting this opportunity slip away! I will find her if I have to search the entire United States for her!"

Silence filled the room. Tariq slowly lifted his hand from Hector's arm. "All right, then. If there is something between this woman and you, I will gladly assist you in finding her." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his checkbook. "This is your first time going to the United States, correct? Fifty-thousand dollars should be enough for now."

"_Fifty-thousand _American dollars?" Hector asked incredulously.

Tariq smiled thinly. "You'll need a good cover. An expensive car, clothes, and the like. And if Penny is still on the East Coast, well…it's _quite _expensive to live in New England these days." He calmly signed the check and handed it over. "Cash it at this bank only and call me when you come in contact with her. Since this is the Morrison Center we're dealing with, you might need considerable help."

Hector took the check. "Thank you, Tariq. I will remember this kindness."

"Just confirm whether or not Penny McCormick is your lifemate," Tariq said. "That will prove that this system works for us."


	2. Prologue: Penny

Prologue

"_Grief is the agony of an instant, the indulgence of grief the blunder of a life."_

_- Benjamin Disraeli_

* * *

_Penny McCormick_

_13 years old_

Penny heard the heartbeats before she heard the voices. The minute she woke up every day, her mind pulsed with the rhythm of the two most precious heartbeats in the world to her. She smiled, and rolled onto her side. But…as awareness came to her, the smile faded, and she frowned. Opening her eyes, she sat up slowly, blinking into the darkness to clear her vision.

These two heartbeats…they belonged to her parents. But one was _very_ erratic at the moment.

"Are you_ crazy_?"

Penny winced at her mother's shout. Bianca Marie sounded angry, but also…_frightened_. Penny had never heard such a combination of emotions in her mother's voice before, and now it sounded horrible. Now it was making _her_ scared.

"Bianca, just listen to me." It was her father, Landen. Unlike his wife's, his heartbeat was very steady. As was his voice. "There's nothing to worry about."

"Nothing to worry about? You're investing yourself in some phony research facility!" Bianca shouted. "Who does _psychic research_, Landen? The rest of the modern world believes it to be nonsense!"

"But these people _don't_. I know there's something different about me, Bianca, just as there's something different about you and something different about Penny. I _feel_ people. Just by staring at someone or being in the same room as someone, I can sense their every emotion. _You_ know this to be true, Bianca!"

"Of course it's true! But…" Penny could hear the blatant uncertainty in Bianca's voice. "You're empathic, Landen. And _I_ have clairaudience. Both of our abilities have created a peculiarity in Penny as well. But I just don't think this is a good idea, Landen! Telling some random "scientist" you're a _psychic_? They're bound to cheat you out of a lot of money and use you for publicity!"

Penny was out of bed now, and she slowly crept out of her room. Her parents were right of course. It appeared that a combination of Landen's empathy and Bianca's clairaudience allowed for Penny to be able to hear heartbeats in any living form. Though they'd been worried that she would have difficulty being use to heartbeats in her head, Penny found it soothing. She'd always heard them, and so they didn't bother her. However, it bothered her to be out in public, especially in school. Only then did her ability bother her, with the sounds of hundreds of heartbeats rattling in her head.

She found, though, that she always heard her parents' heartbeats, no matter how far away they were. She didn't know though if it was because they were also psychic, or if it was because she shared their blood.

"Bianca, the Morrison Center is highly reputable!" Penny was outside their bedroom door now. "I sensed no ill-will from the doctor who interviewed me! I feel I can trust these people!"

"Landen, this isn't a good idea!" Bianca pleaded. "Don't get involved with them! What if they experiment on you? Or worse, what about Penny? What if they want her?"

"I haven't told them about Penny, Bianca. Only about me—"

"But they're bound to find out!"

Penny meekly knocked on the door. "Mom? Dad?"

Both heartbeats immediately picked up at her interruption. Penny stepped away from the door, almost worried they would be upset with her.

The door opened, and Bianca sheepishly greeted her daughter. "I'm sorry sweetheart, did we wake you?"

"No," Penny said. She looked past her mother into the bedroom at Landen. For the most part, Penny inherited her looks from her mother. Landen had very fair coloring; light hair and blue eyes, while Bianca's hair was very curly and dark brown and she had dark eyes. "Is something wrong? Why are you guys fighting?"

"It's nothing, Penny." Landen walked over to stand next to Bianca. "We were having a discussion, that's all."

But Penny knew it was more than that. And she resented the fact that they were keeping her in the dark about it. "What's the Morrison Center?"

Despite his earlier reassurances, Landen flinched. Then again, so did Bianca. "Are they bad people?"

"No, no, honey," Landen said, kneeling down in front of her. "They just want to—"

"Penny." Bianca took her daughter's hand in hers. "Don't tell anyone about this, okay?"

"Bianca, I don't think that's necessary," Landen said defensively. "We're not in any danger."

"I'm not taking any chances. It's bad enough they already know about you, but I don't want them to get reach our daughter."

"Bianca, I've already told you they're only interested in _me_. Penny." Landen turned back to his daughter again. "You have nothing to worry about. You know that all three of us have special abilities, right? Well, the Morrison Center specializes in research into these abilities. They want to know more about me, and so I'm lending them my help."

"But still," Bianca cut in. "Keep this in mind the same as _your_ special ability. Don't tell _anyone _about this, okay?"

Penny looked at both of their parents, and she could still feel the anxiety in Bianca's heartbeat, while her father was a lot calmer. She didn't know anything about this Morrison Center, and she didn't like how it made her mother feel. Still, she nodded and forced a smile. "All right. I won't tell anyone about this."

Penny returned to her room and tried to go back to sleep. But the resonating sounds of her parents' heartbeats remained with her. And there was no disguising Bianca's anxiety.

Suddenly, she felt a raw surge. Very abruptly, a strange sounding heartbeat pumped through her head. She sat up in alarm, and looked out her window. But she saw nobody. And after that initial beat, she could no longer feel the heart rhythm.

She pressed a hand over her own heart, which was beating frantically. "What was that?"

* * *

_14 years old_

Bianca was pacing the room very nervously, wringing her hands and looking at the wall clock. Penny was trying to do her homework, but she was distracted by her mother's distress. Her heartbeat was so strong and rapid inside Penny's head, to the point she threw her pencil down. "Mom, please sit down. Dad's bound to be home any minute."

"How close is he?" she asked anxiously, looking helplessly at the clock once more.

Penny listened very carefully for Landen. It was hard to hear his heartbeat because of Bianca's panic, but she somehow found her focus. She was startled to find her father's heartbeat to be very close…and just as anxious. "He's almost home," she announced, standing up from the table.

Bianca quickly spun around. "R-Really?"

Suddenly, the front door burst open, and Landen ran inside. He slammed the door shut and locked it tightly. He looked through the peephole briefly before running to the living room window and peering out.

"Landen!" Bianca rushed to his side. She made a move as though she wanted to hit him, but she didn't. "Where have you been? You've been gone since last night!"

"We have to leave!" Landen shouted, tearing away from the window. He brushed past his wife and daughter and began digging rapidly into the hall closet. "Get your things and pack! We have to go!"

"W-What? Go?" Penny cried. His panic was causing his heart rate to accelerate more and more. "Where?"

"Anywhere but here, but we have to _leave_!"

"What happened?" Bianca screamed. She grabbed one of his arms. "What's going on?"

"They're coming for me! For _us_!" Landen pulled out all the coats and threw them into a plastic bag. He ran into the bedroom. "I got the phone call at work! They…something's happened!"

"_What's_ happened?"

Penny was hardly registering the argument. She slowly sat down as the shock of the situation consumed her. Leave…but to where? How far away? She had a whole life right here. Friends and school…and they had to leave it all? Right at that moment?

"—normal!" Landen shouted from the bedroom. "I did everything right! I gave them blood samples and a full background check! I even told them about my mother! But they—somebody said we're _not human_!"

Penny swallowed thickly, and looked down at her lap. Landen never talked about his mother, but she knew enough. Her grandmother Kaylea had been a hyper-sensitive empath who not only felt emotions but could hear the thoughts of _everyone_ around her. It ended up driving her insane and she was locked in a mental hospital when Landen was eleven. Landen didn't bother visiting her until he was eighteen, when he was told she was dead…or missing. The hospital hadn't remembered what it was.

"You _bastard_!"

Penny jumped back to her feet as she heard the unmistakable sound of Bianca punching her father. "What did I tell you? I _told_ you not to trust them! Look what you've done to us!"

"No—stop!" Penny cried. She ran into their bedroom and saw Bianca punching at Landen, who was hunched over and not even putting up a fight. She grabbed her mother by her arm. "Please, stop fighting! Don't fight!"

"W-We have to _go_, Penny." Tears were streaming down Bianca's cheeks. It completely unnerved Penny. "Pack what you can and be ready in ten minutes."

"S-So we are…" Penny looked between her parents in horror. "But we can't just _leave_!"

"We have no choice," Landen said, straightening and shoving clothes into a suitcase. "I'm so sorry, sweetheart, but we're in danger. We have to get away from here."

"Then call the cops!" Penny shrieked. "Tell _somebody_ we're in danger! I don't want to leave! I have my whole _life_ here!" tears were now burning at _her _eyes and she dug her fingers into Bianca's arm.

"Can't we go to the police?" Bianca asked helplessly. "Maybe they can—"

"I went to the cops before I came home, Bianca," Landen said grimly. "They laughed in my face. And then somebody tried to follow me home. It took me three hours to shake them."

"Oh no…" Penny threw her arms around Bianca and buried her face into her side. "This can't be happening! This can't be _happening_!"

Landen stopped packing long enough to hug his wife and daughter tightly. "I'm so sorry. Oh _God_ I'm so sorry! I don't know what to do, but for right now we just have to run! Please trust me on this!"

Penny groaned in anguish, but broke away from her parents. She ran into her room and pulled out her vacation suitcase, which wasn't _nearly_ big enough to fit fourteen years worth of her stuff. It was so awful…and she didn't have time to say goodbye to _anyone_…

* * *

_16 years old _

Penny didn't know how many times they'd moved in two years. They never stayed in one place for very long. She barely had enough time to get settled in one school, with a new set of friends, before they had to be plucked out and on the road again.

It was so _frustrating_. And she hated her father for doing this to her. But she didn't know any better. She didn't understand the great danger they were in.

She got a rude awakening when she finally opened up to a guidance counselor.

"_Fifteen _schools? In less than two years?" the woman had looked so trustworthy to Penny. She'd felt she could rely on her for anything. Even with this dirty little secret she'd held.

"I don't know what to do," Penny said, twiddling with some strands of her curly hair. "I want to have a normal life, you know? I want to have a good set of friends that I can actually keep. But we just keep moving. I can't have a normal life. I've spent more time in the back of a car than under the roof of a house."

The counselor took some notes. "Why do you keep moving, Penny?"

Penny blushed a little. _This_ part also embarrassed her, but she felt she could trust this woman. "My dad said somebody's after him. Maybe trying to kill him."

"Trying to kill him?" the counselor raised an eyebrow. "Is your father doing anything illegal?"

"No, of course not! He just got involved in some people he thought were trying to help him, and now these guys are trying to kill him!"

The counselor took a long series of notes on her notepad and smiled at Penny. "I'm going to call your father, okay Penny? Why don't you wait in the hall until he arrives?"

Penny's heart skipped a beat. She suddenly felt uneasy. This counselor had always had a steady rhythm, a _soothing_ one. But now it was…odd. Erratic. But her face was so calm. What was going on? Was she suspicious of her father?

The sick feeling didn't dissipate, even after Penny slid into a seat in the hallway. Further down the hall she could hear kids playing basketball in the gym and their hastened heartbeats from their physical activities. Her throat tightened and her eyes burned with tears. Why couldn't she have that? Why did she have to be sitting here outside the counseling office spilling out her life's troubles?

The muted sounds of hundreds of heartbeats rattled in her head, but she immediately picked up Landen's and Bianca's. Landen seemed very calm now, but Bianca was full of anxiety. That was nothing new; from the first moment Landen told them to pack, Bianca was never calm. She had resorted to taking hyper-anxiety medication, and Penny hated it. It made her heartbeat so _strange_, and in the long run the medication did nothing for her mother.

_Why…_she buried her face into her hands. _I hate this so much! I just want it to end!_

Then it was there again; that strange heartbeat she'd first heard when she first heard about this God-awful Morrison Center. It fluctuated in her head constantly. Sometimes it felt close, and sometimes it was far away. But it was there, and she didn't like it. It made her so uneasy because it didn't sound _normal_.

"Penny?"

Penny snapped to attention at the sound of her counselor's voice. She turned to see the woman standing there with an unfamiliar man. "Y-Yes?"

"This is Dr. Sherman Greene," the counselor introduced. "And he would like to ask you a few questions."

Dr. Greene extended a hand to her. "How do you do, Penny?"

Penny reluctantly shook his head. She gasped aloud as she became aware of his heartbeat. She jerked her hand out of his and hugged it to her chest. It wasn't normal. Sure, it pumped like a humans, but it was fast and out of control. And yet his face was completely unmoving. He was smiling, but his eyes…

Neither party seemed to notice her actions. "I have a few questions," Greene began. "About your father."

Penny felt uneasy. All at once she felt intensely guilty, like she'd betrayed her family. "I was mistaken—"

"Penny, you made it clear to me you thought your father's life was in danger," the counselor interjected. "So why don't you tell Dr. Greene _exactly _what you told me?"

Penny looked between the two of them uneasily. She was in a public place, but if she screamed nobody would surely help her. She was in a school, after all, and these were adults. "Where's my dad?"

"I was hoping that_ you_ would be able to answer that question," Greene said. His smile had suddenly become so slimy that it made Penny's skin crawl. "You see, we have need of your father, Penny. And, as it turns out, we also have need of _you_."

Penny gaped at the counselor, realizing who this woman truly was. But the counselor simply smiled down at her as if nothing was out of the ordinary.

Suddenly, she felt it. Landen's heartbeat, and it was approaching the school very fast!

"We must—" Greene began.

"**LEAVE ME ALONE**!" Penny shrieked, mostly as a distraction. She jumped to her feet and ran for her life in the opposite direction at the main doors.

"Penny, get back here!" the counselor bellowed out, but the two of them were momentarily halted by teachers in neighboring classrooms, who looked out to see why Penny had screamed.

It only gave Penny a few seconds, but that was what she needed. She burst through the doors of the school and tore down the front steps, just as Landen unassumingly pulled up to the curb. "Penny, what—"

"They're here, GO!" Penny shrieked. She dived into the passenger seat and Landen wasted no time. Penny didn't have her seat belt on before he tore out of the school parking lot, Greene and the counselor and security officers chasing after them.

"Penny, what the hell happened in there?" Landen demanded. But Penny only slumped in her seat. Now they would have to flee again, and it was all her fault.

But she learned an important lesson that day. There was nobody she could trust. Only her parents, and their lives were every bit in danger as hers.

* * *

_17 years old_

"I'm seventeen today," Penny mumbled to herself. She pulled the hat further down over her face, even as it caused her sunglasses to slip down her nose. It was an odd get-up, especially indoors at the mall, but she had to be careful.

Landen was working, and Bianca was feeling sick, and Penny was feeling severe cabin fever. She went out in disguise to pick out a birthday present with the fifty dollars Bianca had given her. But she didn't feel like buying anything. She just…no. she didn't know what she wanted to do. Heartbeats rattled like glass in her head, but she was glad to be out in public. Even if it meant she had to hide her face most of the time.

"You there."

Penny didn't recognize the voice, but she knew it was directed at her. She ducked her head lower and began to pick up the pace.

"Seventeen girl! You have a fading birthmark on the inside of your right thigh!"

Penny jerked her head up and spun around. There was a makeshift table sandwiched in between a clothing boutique and a cookie nook. An old woman was fiddling with beads on the table, and Penny was certain she'd been speaking to her.

She looked around to make sure nobody was watching her, and approached the table. "Who are you?"

"I'm nobody special," the old woman replied.

"Then why are you talking to me?"

"How can you be so sure I was talking to you?"

"Because you called me 'seventeen girl'. I just turned seventeen _today_."

"And the birthmark?"

Penny flushed a little and looked away. "…I have one."

The old woman finally looked up at her. "So I _was_ talking to you!"

"Are you with the Morrison Center?" Penny snapped. "Why can't you people just leave us the hell alone? There's nothing wrong with us!"

"Shush, don't speak so loud. Especially about a Godforsaken group like the Morrison Center." The old woman held out a frail hand to her. "May I…?"

Penny stared at the hand warily, and stared at the woman. She sensed her heartbeat and it made her feel easy by the steady tone. This old woman didn't seem to have any ill-will. Maybe she could…

Penny told hold of her hand. The old woman suddenly yelped loudly and pulled it free with surprising strength. "What is it?" Penny cried.

The old woman took several deep breaths, and her hand trembled as though it'd suffered a shock. Finally, she looked at Penny. "You are alone."

A cold jolt of fear shook her body. "No, I'm not."

"You _are_. I've seen it all, and I…" the old woman shook her head. "You poor child…"

"I'm _not _alone," Penny snapped. "I have a family!"

"They…it will not be long before…" she suddenly paused. "A little one."

"A little what?"

"Your _sister_ will guide you."

Penny stared at her blankly for a long moment. She quickly turned away. "Goodbye."

"Wait!" the woman cried, suddenly jumping to her feet. "You are in danger! It will work out for you, but the PAIN! I see the pain!"

"I have no sister!" Penny growled at her. "I'm an _only child_, you fraud! Now leave me alone!"

"But you don't understand!"

But Penny continued on walking. Anger flooded her body, in addition to fear. She'd said she would be alone. And she _was_ in danger…

_But I don't have a sister_. Her shoulders relaxed somewhat. _I've __**never**__ had a sister, and Mom's too old to have any more babies. Besides, with everything going on, it would be stupid to suddenly get pregnant._

But how had the woman known she was seventeen? And what about her birthmark? And the danger she was in?

* * *

_18 years old_

When Bianca broke the news, there was no joy to be handed out.

"I'm pregnant."

Penny felt her fingers tense around the book she was reading. A cold numbing sense of fear took hold of her. _Pregnant?_

"Bianca!" Landen jumped to his feet and grabbed her shoulders. "Are you sure?"

Bianca nodded stiffly. "I went to the doctor this morning."

"But we were _careful_! We used protection! How can you be pregnant?"

Bianca shrugged. "He said the birth control failed me."

"Oh no…" Landen grabbed hold of his head and collapsed onto the couch. "A baby…we're trapped now! They're going to get us for sure now!"

Penny tossed aside her book and rushed over to her mother. She gave her a quick hug. "What do you want to do?" she asked quietly.

Bianca shook her head, and tears flooded her eyes. "I don't know. I-I just don't…"

Penny helped her sit down. "Do you want to keep her?"

Bianca's head snapped up. "How did you know the baby's a girl?"

"_Your _**sister**_ will guide you."_

"Lucky guess," Penny lied lamely. She brushed Bianca's hair out of her face. "Dad's right, though. Having a baby will ground us and make it easier for them to find us. Do you want to have her?"

Bianca seemed to contemplate this for a long time. Finally, she nodded. "More than anything."

Landen groaned, but he stood up. He came over to them and hugged them both tightly. "I'll protect you! I swear to God I'll protect all three of you!"

The running had taken its toll on him so greatly. Despite it all, Penny loved him so much and she hugged him tightly. This tiny little family sat there for such a long time, simply holding each other. And Penny could hear it; the tiny sound of her baby sister's heartbeat. The old woman had been right.

But Penny had forgotten the rest of her prediction. Three days after this, Landen went missing. His dismembered body was found another six days later along the shore of a river.

And Penny…she'd known the exact moment he'd died. When he went missing, she could still feel his heartbeat. She could feel the fear in him through it, and the rapid acceleration and deceleration. Something terrible was happening; she knew it.

But she didn't tell Bianca. Her mother was under so much anxiety as it was, and it wasn't good for the baby. So Penny kept her mouth shut about it, and never told anyone.

But…

It was the most horrible thing in the world. She didn't get any sleep during those agonizing days. And when she felt it…that horrible, _horrible_ sensation of Landen's heartbeat fading, it was too unbearable.

_I'm here, I'm here! _she tried to think to her father, rocking back in forth in bed. _Please stay with me, Daddy! Don't leave me! Don't leave me!_

Then…it was gone. For the first time in Penny's life, she didn't feel her father. He was gone.

And suddenly, Bianca screamed hysterically from the bedroom. And when Penny rushed to her side to comfort her and share in the anguish, she knew she hadn't needed to tell Bianca anything. Because she _knew_. When Penny had felt Landen die…Bianca had _heard _it.

It was impossible for them to run away again. Bianca had such poor health; she would most certainly lose the baby. And Penny was on the verge of graduating from high school, even if it was some random school she had no attachment to. But the baby was growing inside Bianca's body and the both of them lived in constant fear.

And in the back of Penny's mind, she kept hearing that ugly heartbeat. Every so often it felt like it was very close by, but for the most part it was very far away.

* * *

Penny looked at her watch, and swallowed thickly. The guest speaker was still droning on with his graduation speech, letting them all know of the future that they had in front of them. Like most of the kids surrounding her in the audience, Penny wasn't paying attention.

The heartbeat was still too far away.

Bianca had said she would come. Penny was graduating from high school, and she'd said she would see her commencement ceremony. She'd felt so _sick_ though, and needed to lie down for a couple extra hours before Penny got her diploma. But now Penny hated that she hadn't brought her mother there with her. She didn't want to be apart from her.

Suddenly, Penny doubled over in pain and clutched at her head. _Mom!_

Bianca's heartbeat was rattling like crazy. Penny felt bile rise in her throat. It reminded her too strongly of Landen's heartbeat when he'd went missing, and they'd later discovered he'd been tortured to death.

Tortured… "MOM!" Penny shrieked, disrupting the entire ceremony.

She climbed over seats, and over people to get to the aisle. Teachers and parents tried to grab for her, but she was too fast. They'd all known about her, and the horrifying way her father died. They surely all thought she'd lost it.

But Penny knew better. Something was terribly wrong!

_I'm coming! I'M COMING! _She ignored the security surrounded the auditorium as she burst out of the school and ran for her car, her commencement gown swooshing all around her. Her graduation cap flew off her head, but she didn't notice. She jumped behind the wheel of her worn down car and sped out of there. She had no thought for the speed limits. All that mattered to her was getting home.

She reached into her glove box and pulled out a handgun. It wasn't a legal gun, but she felt safe holding it. Landen had always kept a gun with him, though it didn't do him any good. She dropped the gun into her lap and pulled out her cell phone."Pick up, _pick up_!" she begged.

But Bianca didn't pick up the phone. It went straight to the answering machine. _"—Leave a message and we'll get back to you."_

"I'm coming, Mama!" she cried, her vision swimming with tears. She could barely see the road. "I'll save you! Just sit tight, and—"

Somebody picked up the phone. _"You'd __**better**__ hurry, Penny."_

Penny stiffened. "Sherman Greene?"

"_So you remember me, hmm? That's good, because I remember YOU quite well. I hope you will be of better service to us, Penny, considering how __**useless**__ your mother is proving to be…"_

"Stay away from her!" Penny shrieked. "I'll kill all of you if you hurt her!"

"_You're not in any position to make threats, little girl. Just get here in the next ten minutes, because Bianca won't survive that long!"_

It was true; Penny knew the horrible truth by the thudding of Bianca's heart. And that other heartbeat that always scared her was so close by. This was all so _hard_…

What was supposed to be their temporary home was an abandoned farmhouse. It was suppose to provide cover from the Morrison Center, but now the Morrison Center used the solitarily to freely torture Bianca. Penny felt hate and anguish consume her heart as she sped up the dirt road to the front porch. Her right hand curled around the gun, the finger twitching around the trigger.

"PENNY!" Bianca was screaming from inside the house. Penny could hear her from the car. "PENNY, GET AWAY FROM HERE! **RUN!**"

"Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with you," she prayed aloud, shaking as she saw the movement of men on the porch. Bianca was still screaming, but now it sounded garbled. "Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now at the hour of our dea…" she couldn't go any further. She turned off the ignition and hid the gun in the sleeve of her graduation gown.

One of the men came around the car and opened the door. "Welcome home, Pe—"

It was a reflex. Penny's arm snapped up and she shot the man in the throat. The shock of taking another human life didn't touch her as she kicked the driver's door open fully and took cover behind it.

"She's LOADED!" the second man from the porch shouted. He opened fire frantically on the car, but Penny ducked low to the ground. She shoved her handgun out from underneath the door and by some miracle clipped the second man in between the eyes.

There was movement inside the house, and she could hear Bianca screaming still. Penny let adrenaline kick in and ran up the porch. She had nothing to defend herself. No shield, no bulletproof vest. But her mother was in danger, and her unborn sister was in danger. She _had_ to save them!

The frame of the front doorway was her only cover, but bullets only seemed to whizz by her. Every shot she fired met its mark, but she had so very little time to see her mother. As more bodies fell, she gathered the courage to rush inside the house.

Blood and bodies were strewn all over the floor. Only two people were left standing; Bianca and Greene. Horror gripped Penny's senses when she saw her mother. She was covered in blood and stab wounds and burns. Blood was spilling out of her mouth. _Spilling _and not trickling. Greene locked her up and was using her as a human shield, his own gun pressed against Bianca's temple.

"…I'll kill her!" Greene hollered, hate and insanity pulsating in his eyes. "I'll kill your mother, Penny! Drop the gun if you want her to live!"

Bianca didn't react to Greene. Her eyes were only on her daughter. "Penny…Penny…"

Penny raised the gun and pointed it at Greene's face. Her throat was too tight for her to form words, though.

"I told you to drop the gun, you stupid bitch!" Greene yelled. The man surely knew there was no way out, with all his associates dead, but he wasn't giving up. "I'll blow a hole through her head! It'll be your fault! DROP THE GUN!"

"Penny…run…" Bianca gasped, and Penny's heart twisted up. Her mother was about to die and yet she cared more about _Penny_ than her own well-being!

"I'll give you to the count of three and then I'll blow this bitch to hell!" Greene shrieked. "One!"

Penny didn't flinch. And she kept the gun steady. "Two!"

But Penny wasn't afraid. Strength came to her in the love she had for Bianca…and the love for the baby she carried. "I won't miss."

"Thr—"

Penny squeezed the trigger. The bullet pierced the center of Greene's forehead, causing him to whiplash back. It happened so fast that he didn't have time to pull the trigger, not even as a reflex. But Bianca didn't have the strength to pull free, and the both of them fell violent to the floor.

Penny dropped her empty gun on the floor and rushed over to Bianca's side. "MOM! Mama! Hang on, I'm coming! I'll save you!"

Bianca coughed and hacked up more blood. Penny couldn't assess the injuries, and Bianca heartbeat was so erratic. She didn't know how to help her! "Mama, I'll save you! I swear I will!" she wailed hysterically.

Bianca grabbed for Penny's fingers and held on very loosely. It was as hard as she could hold on, though. "Penny….save…"

"I'll save you!" Penny tried to sit her mother up, but Bianca wouldn't move.

And Bianca shook her head. "Grace…"

"Grace?" Penny sniffled and looked at her mother. "Who's Grace?"

"Save her," Bianca wheezed, shaking Penny's hand. "The baby…save her!"

"Your baby?" Penny looked down at Bianca's large stomach. She was just over eight months pregnant, but… "How? Let me call an ambulance!"

"No time! No _time_!" Bianca jerked in pain, but she looked at Penny. "I've lost too much blood. She's dying…please save her!"

"HOW?" Penny shrieked. "How can I save her?"

Bianca could barely catch her breath, and it was with great difficulty that she spoke next.

"Cut her out."

"WHAT? NO!" Penny shrieked. She jumped to her feet. "You'll _die_, Mom!"

"I'm dead anyways!" Bianca gurgled out. "But Grace…save her!"

"Don't die! Don't leave me!" Penny collapsed to her knees and hugged her mother. "Don't make me do this! I can help you both!"

"_Feel_ her!" Bianca pleaded. "She's dying…she has to get out! Save her!"

Penny _could_ feel it. The baby—Grace—her heartbeat was laboring. The blood loss was causing shock. She needed to…

"No! No, no, NO!" Penny screamed over and over again. "Please, Mama! Please don't die on me! I don't want you to die! You, _or _Grace!"

"Y-You have to. Don't you…" Bianca groaned, and eased into the floor. Her strength was leaving her body. "Do you sense it? I know you can hear the heartbeat."

Penny stiffened at this. "How did you know?"

"This person has followed me all this time. And now he might…" Bianca shook her head stiffly. "But I won't let him get to you. You have no t-time. I-I'm _dying_, my love. And so is Grace. But Grace…oh, Penny! Please save her!"

Penny choked on a sob, and scrubbed at her face with bloodstained hands. It was then that she saw it. A pocketknife out of the corner of her eyes, lying next to one of those monsters who hurt her mother.

And now she…

Bile rose in her throat, but Penny reached for the knife.

* * *

Several minutes later, Penny burst from the house and ran as fast as she could to her car. Her graduation gown was off, and it was formed in a bundle in her arms. She was covered in blood…but none of it was her own.

The heartbeat was fading in her head, and she felt bile rise in her throat as she carefully lay the bundle down in the passenger seat. She ran around the side of the car and threw herself behind the wheel. The heartbeat was so faint…but the other was erratic, _frightening_. And the heartbeat beside her…was now so _strong_.

She didn't think to put on her seatbelt. She turned the ignition and tore down the dirt road. In her mind-numbing grief she remembered the passenger beside her, and forced the car to slow down. The bundle began to fidget, and a puffy arm reached out.

Then…a wail broke through and flooded the car. It was the sound of a baby crying…her baby sister.

Penny could barely see the road through her swimming vision. She choked on a sob and gripped the steering wheel with bloody hands. _Oh God, oh God, oh __**GOD**__…what have I done?_

Then…Bianca's heartbeat ceased. And the silence tore through her insides.

Penny locked her jaw, but it was too late. A scream tore out of her, momentarily drowning out her sister's crying. With a jerk she pulled off to the side of the road, unable to drive anymore. She slammed her forehead into the steering wheel and punched the dashboard, screaming in agony and grief. Hysterical sobs were ripped from her body, from her _heart_, and she could do nothing else but sit there…and grieve.

And beside her, her newborn sister continued to cry.


	3. Chapter One

Chapter One

"_Take calculated risks. That is quite different from being rash."_

_- George S. Patton_

* * *

She'd been here. But now she was gone.

Hector took a deep breath and let it out slowly. The little house was in shambles. Papers were everywhere, and all the furniture was broken. He gingerly stepped over the carnage, because he didn't want to draw attention by waving it aside and creating noise. There was police tape from the Boston Police Department wrapped up across the door frame, and over a few windows. Someone must've reported this home invasion, and they hadn't figured out who had done it.

He slowly knelt down and his fingers grazed over a pile of papers. He tried not to sigh and he closed his eyes. It'd been over two months since he started the search for Penny McCormick, the poor woman hunted by a horrible foe. In this amount of time she'd moved thirteen times, indicating to Hector that the Morrison Center was quickly closing in on her. Fate was kind to him then, by guiding him on her path in the nick of time.

He hoped. In this time he had discovered that Grace McCormick _was_ the baby Bianca had been pregnant with during the interrogation tape. Somehow the child survived that trauma and has lived all this time with her older sister. He couldn't help but feel a swell of pride at this, even as his heart beat uneasily. He admired Penny's courage, and her tenacity to look after her sister, when it would've been easier—and maybe safer—to drop Grace into the CPS system and disappear. But it was a daily struggle now to not get his hopes up. He was starting to believe too strongly that Penny was his lifemate. There was a possibility that his own darkness was playing tricks on him, and that there was no connection between them at all.

As his fingers idly sifted through the papers, his other hand rose and pressed over the middle of his sternum. His injury had long since healed, but the shame hadn't faded. Mikhail had asked so little of him, especially in light of his own troubles. He'd been asked to guard the Crane sisters, two American women, from the mage who'd wanted them dead. Yet when faced with this beautiful yet _sinister_ mage, he couldn't fight her. He could see that she was a terrible person, who used an imaginary lifemate to manipulate all of them. It was enough of a distraction to find him stabbed with a piece of ice and the Crane sisters were left defenseless.

_But it's fine now, _he told himself. _The younger sister is about to get her PhD, and the elder is helping her lifemate make amends to the world._

That a vampire could regain salvation gave Hector a profound amount of hope for himself. He didn't ever intend to put his lifemate through what Parn put his lifemate through, though. No, _he_ was going to stand strong. Most of all, he was going to find her.

Penny had eluded him again, though. They'd been the Marshalls here in Boston; Penny with the pseudonym Hannah and Grace's was Loretta. He didn't think to trace the two with this name because he knew Penny would purchase new identities on the black market. So, it was back to the drawing board for him.

Hector pushed aside more papers and stiffened. A family photo stared up at him, one that Penny no doubt had forgotten in her hurry. He quickly snatched it up and held it in both hands. There were two females in the photo, one full-grown woman and the other a small child. Both were sitting in a porch swing and smiling into the camera.

His eyes fixated on the woman, though. _This _had to be Penny. Both Penny and Grace looked identical, more like mother and daughter than sisters. Dark hair that was outrageously curly, like a bundle of strings, and dark eyes that showed a subdued happiness and love.

His stomach clenched, though. In this modern age, this photograph had to have been in color. But staring at the face of Penny McCormick invoked none of his colors. Nothing whatsoever, other than a stir of emotions from her beauty.

Hector slowly lowered the photograph. Was this it, then? Was Penny _not _the person he was looking for? His heart clenched with pain, and he felt a strange humming in his ears. The darkness was starting to whisper to him again, taking advantage of this shock to try and turn him.

_No_. He shook his head violently. _I am NOT giving in!_

Abruptly, the humming ceased and he was left in silence. He looked at the photo once more. _Maybe…she has to be physically present to invoke the colors? _Hope sprang into his heavy heart. Yes, that would make sense. Carpathians' emotions usually returned to them by seeing their lifemate, or hearing their voice at a distance. This photograph _wasn't_ really Penny; it was just an image on photographic paper. And didn't Vikirnoff carry around a photo of Natalya for _months _before realizing she was his lifemate?

"I won't give up," he said aloud. He stood up and looked at the photo once more. "I will find you. And if you're not my lifemate…" he shuddered slightly at this thought. "Well, you both _still_ need someone to protect you."

He looked at both girls once more, but the little one's face caught him off-guard. Even with a happy expression, her face held a level of serenity he'd never seen in a child.

* * *

"Shelby?"

Penny didn't respond to the name and continued talking into the phone. "—we should have your access all up to speed by the end of the day. Yes, you're welcome and have a good day."

"Hey, Shelby Webster!"

As Penny hung up the phone, she became aware of the heartbeat rattling irritably at the opening of her cubicle. She spun around in her chair. "What is it, Marcus?"

Marcus shook his head at her. "Didn't you hear me talking to you, Shelby? I called your name like three times!"

Penny stiffened, and she felt heat flood her cheeks. "I-I'm sorry," she sputtered, her fingers curling around the arms of her chair. "B-But I was talking to a customer—"

"Yeah, I understand." Marcus waved a dismissive hand. "I just wanted to remind you of the seminar the boss wants us all to attend. Some guy from Portland flew down to give us a speech, or something. It starts in twenty." He turned and walked away.

Penny let out a short breath. He wasn't suspicious of her because she wasn't responding to a name she'd only had for three weeks. He'd just been irritated because he thought she was ignoring him.

She sat there still for a minute before she grabbed her cell phone. There was only one number on it and she quickly texted it: _"Are the flowers still in bloom?"_

Her coworkers were rising from their cubicles to go to the seminar, but Penny didn't intend to leave until she got a response. She just hoped the recipient didn't get in trouble over having a cell phone at school.

The reply came just moments later. _"Blooming brightly."_

She let out a sigh of relief and pocketed her cell phone. Still, her heart was heavy as she slowly stood up to head to the building's small auditorium. The message had been a simple code. Asking if flowers were in bloom was her way of saying: "Are you all right?" The response was thankfully positive, as blooming confirmed the recipient was okay.

It was the best she could do at this point. She couldn't outright ask if everything was okay, because _anybody_ could simply respond positively with the cell phone. With their system, though, they would both know if anything was wrong based upon wordplay.

Penny stumbled a little as she walked, and had to lean against the wall to steady herself. It wasn't so often that she focused on her own heartbeat, but it was rattling with her immense stress. She always got no more than five hours of sleep every night, and she slept with three guns in her room, and various others hidden throughout the house. She looked at her coworkers, and though they were kind to her she knew she couldn't afford to get close to them. _Anyone_ could be part of the Morrison Center, and no matter how hard she tried to hide, or how much money she spent on new identities, they always found her.

_This is too much for me to handle_. The thought wasn't finish before she violently shook her head in denial. _No, no! I have to be strong! These people killed my parents and they're after me! After my little sister! They won't __**ever**__ get to us!_

Still, it was very trying. She was just twenty-six years old, and her life was so distorted. No normal person should have to put with everything she had to. She was always, _always_ looking over her shoulder, and keeping one eye open when she slept. It was painful to think about, but she remembered the resentment she'd felt for her parents over this. Now, she was in full sympathy over the predicament they held.

_What about Grace? _she thought suddenly, stopping in her tracks. _Does_ she _resent me over this?_

It never seemed that way, though. Grace seemed to have a very Zen-like disposition to life in general. She tended to creep other kids out because of this. Nothing ever seemed to faze her, not all this constant moving or all these dangerous threats against them. She took it all as though it were a normal part of life.

_But it's NOT._ Penny's resolve strengthened and she continued walking. _It's not normal. I will show her what a normal life means, no matter what it takes._

She walked into the small auditorium and took a seat in the back row. She had no real attachment to this place or to this life in general. It was all part of being Shelby Webster, working the phones for a cable company. With each city she fled, and each 'life' she left behind, she kept having this sinking feeling that none of them could last very long. Her previous identity as Hannah Marshall hadn't even lasted two months, which was very disconcerting to her.

Once everyone was seated, their general manager took the stage to introduce their guest speaker. Penny simply closed her eyes and allowed the sounds of dozens of heartbeats to drown him out. She knew nothing about television cable, and she hadn't really watched television in eight years.

_Eight years…_her throat tightened, even as she pushed away unwanted memories. _And I've been on the run even longer…_

Suddenly, she sucked in a breath. Amidst all the heartbeats in her head, there was one that was incredibly odd. It sounded distorted and uneven. She quickly sat up in her chair. This could only mean one thing…

"Please welcome our speaker today, Martin Quincy!" her boss introduced.

A fair-haired young man took the stage, and shook the manager's hand. He looked like he was around Penny's age, if not a few years older. He wore a tan colored suit, but it oddly looked a little large on him. Pale blue eyes cast out over the assembly, and Penny heard some of the women in attendance murmur in appreciation of his subtle good looks.

But Penny was on edge. She focused her mind and she realized that the erratic heartbeat was coming from this Martin Quincy. She suddenly sank in her seat. Was he looking for her? _Not again!_

Martin gave no indication he was there for anything other than giving a presentation about cable television technology. It was very mundane, especially for Penny, but she forced her mind to keep focus. She monitored his every movement, studying his mannerisms. Every time he looked out over the audience she would duck slightly, although her instincts told her that such an action would only draw more attention to herself.

She noticed something distinctive about Martin, though. He had a slight twitch in his left hand, which was noticeable when he used it to point to an image. After that he only used his right hand. Periodically his left hand would touch the side of his head, almost as though checking for something.

As the presentation came to a close, Penny slowly rose up from her seat. She had to find out what was going on with this guy. If he was part of the Morrison Center, she had to somehow stop him before he called them back!

Her coworkers started going back to work, even as a few lagged behind to talk to Martin. He answered their questions courteously, but he seemed to be in a hurry, gathering up papers and his computer equipment before quickly exiting the stage. Penny noted that he was heading in the direction of the technical room, and used the shadows of the auditorium to avoid her boss and follow him.

Once she was back behind the stage, Penny kneeled down and pulled out a knife that she had strapped to her right calf, underneath the pant-leg of her black ladies suit. She held the knife behind her back and approached the room very carefully. Martin's heartbeat was now _extremely_ erratic, and that in turn made her even more nervous.

_Just get it together. You need to protect your family!_

She hesitated a hand on the doorknob before shoving it open. Martin had his back to her, but he quickly spun around. He had a hand cupped over his mouth, and a bottle of water in the other. He was startled by her arrival and immediately started coughing.

"I'm sorry to intrude," Penny said, keeping her voice very calm and cool. "But I have a question, Mr. Quincy." She quickly scanned the room, but she saw nothing that hadn't been there before. She also spotted a orange bottle on the panel, though.

Martin slowly brought his cough under control, and Penny allowed herself to relax, somewhat. She'd caught him off-guard, and he didn't seem armed. His back turned briefly, and she took the opportunity to sheath her knife.

"W-What can I do for you?" he sputtered, wiping his face with a pocket handkerchief.

"You're from Portland? As in Portland, Maine?" she didn't know _why_ she asked this question, especially since Portland was her hometown. But this also helped to give her an idea of where Martin's been.

"Yes, I am. It's a very nice city." He started cleaning up his items and putting them into a briefcase. He looked at Penny. "How did you feel about the presentation?"

"It was informative."

Martin winced slightly. "You sound like someone who doesn't have a passion for this sort of industry."

Penny shrugged, but he continued. "It's always important, with _any_ job, to love what you do. Otherwise you're just doomed to a life of misery. If you can't find yourself happy with the day to days of working, how can you make somebody else happy?"

Penny said nothing to this. She had no experience with this line of thinking. When she was a kid she played with the idea of being a marine biologist, because she wanted to hear the heartbeats of marine life in the ocean. That of course was quickly shoved aside when it was apparent that she could focus on nothing else but survival.

"Did I interrupt you?" she blurted out. She motioned to the orange bottle. "I guess I interrupted your medication."

"Oh, this?" Martin raised the pill bottle with his shaking hand. "It's for my seizures."

"…Seizures?" she repeated slowly.

"Epilepsy," Martin quickly added. "I-I'm epileptic, you see, and since I travel as part of my job the seizures can be an inconvenience."

"I see." But he was _lying_. Penny could sense it with the sudden shift in heartbeat the minute he mentioned epilepsy. But why lie about it then? He was taking prescription pills for _something_. Unless…was he _abusing _them?

But…Penny forced herself to back off. Despite her earlier unease, being up close to Martin Quincy has relaxed her somewhat. Despite his epilepsy lie, he seemed to give off an aura of goodwill. He didn't seem to have any ulterior motives. "Well, thank you for your time. I'll head back to work now." She slowly backed out of the room. _Get a grip on yourself, Penny…_

"It was a pleasure to meet you, Penny," Martin said over his shoulder.

Penny stopped dead and cold fear consumed her body. "What did you say?"

Martin looked at her fully, seeming to be confused. "Penny. That's your name isn't it?"

"…My name is Shelby Webster," Penny said very slowly. "Who told you my name was Penny?"

"Really?" Martin seemed to give this a lot of thought. He quickly nodded. "All right, Shelby." But Penny could sense the confusion in his heartbeat.

Penny quickly turned and hurried out of the room. As she left, Martin dealt her a final blow of unease. She couldn't clearly hear him mumble, "I must've heard it wrong."

* * *

Penny parked in the bus loop of the elementary school and got out of the car. Grace would always be waiting for her in her third grade classroom not far from the bus loop, so Penny wasn't too concerned the school would tow her car. Besides, it was just beyond the time when the buses took kids home from after-school activities, so no more buses would show up.

That was definitely one thing Penny had Grace do, and that was engage with school as long as possible during the day. Grace was constantly doing gym intramurals or activities with the arts and crafts clubs. She was terrified of leaving her sister alone at home, and she didn't trust anyone to babysit her. She couldn't even trust the bus drivers to get her safely to school. She always dropped Grace off at school and picked her up, the same thing Landen always did for her.

Penny found Grace's classroom and looked inside. Grace was seated at her desk, calmly gluing construction paper together. It looked like she was creating puppets on strings.

Before Penny could knock though, Grace's teacher came to the door and came out into the hallway to greet her. "Hello, Ms. Webster."

"Hi, Mrs. Rori," Penny said, forcing a smile. She kept her eyes on Grace. "I'm sorry again for being late—"

"Nonsense, don't worry about it." Mrs. Rori waved a dismissive hand. "This gives me plenty of opportunities to catch up on paperwork. But I would like to talk to you about Mira."

Mira was Grace's current name. Penny held onto her smile with difficulty. "Has she gotten into any trouble?"

"No, none whatsoever." But Mrs. Rori seemed a little uncomfortable. "Mira is quite peculiar for her age. She's not very outspoken, but she knows how to set a mood. She has this uncanny ability to be able to know if a child is upset, and she'll address them based on their moods."

"Children are so easy to read," Penny said blandly, trying to make it sound insignificant.

"It's more than that, Ms. Webster. Mira has stopped school fights from happening just by approaching the angry parties and talking to them. We teachers never seem to make such leeway with students. However she hasn't been able to make many friends."

Penny looked at Grace. The little girl was very nonchalant in her activity. She didn't smile but she also didn't look bored.

"Something happened today, too," Mrs. Rori said suddenly.

"What did?" Penny asked, quickly turning around.

"One of our students was feeling very ill, but we didn't realize it. He didn't have an outward appearance of sickness. But Mira walked straight up to him, felt his forehead, and announced he had a fever." Mrs. Rori shook her head. "Let me remind you that this boy didn't appear at all sick, and didn't even _know_ how sick he was!"

"…She's amazing, that's for certain." But now Penny felt uneasy. Grace probably sensed the boy's fever through his heartbeat, the same ability _she_ had. She'd warned Grace to not flaunt their accursed abilities, but…

"Ms. Webster," Mrs. Rori said. "I'm very concerned about Mira."

"How so?" Penny edged away from her.

"She's very anti-social for her age. Not only is she isolated mentally from the other kids, but she seems to prefer it this way. I-Is there any way I can speak to your mot—"

"Our mother died of cancer two months ago," Penny cut in sharply. "So you can understand why she's isolated."

"I-Is Mira in therapy at all?" Mrs. Rori pressed. "I'm very concerned about her mentality."

"Mira doesn't _need_ therapy," Penny snapped. "She's a perfectly healthy girl with a healthy mentality!"

"I-I'm sorry to make that implication. But she…Mira seems to be…_bothered_ by something."

"…Something?" Penny's tone had calmed somewhat.

"She never smiles. Not in class, not during games, and not during lunch. She seems very placid about everything, and _nothing_ seems to embarrass her. I-I'm afraid she doesn't have a passion for _anything_."

It was something that bothered Penny too. She of course had seen Grace smile, but the little girl didn't do it often. She seemed to look at everyone in life with a stoic acceptance, including their hellish lifestyle. Penny wanted Grace to be safe and happy, but as the years came by she became more and more afraid that she was unable to fulfill these needs for her sister. Or to even give her a normal life at all…

The classroom door opened abruptly. "Mrs. Rori, I'm done with the puppets."

Grace. She looked up at the two women with calm eyes, though she stepped closer to Penny.

"O-Of course, Mira," Mrs. Rori said. She forced a smile at the sisters. "You both have a wonderful evening."

"Thank you, Mrs. Rori," Penny said.

She didn't say anything to Grace all the way to the car. She waited for Grace to get into the passenger seat before she got behind the wheel. She looked at her sister while she slipped on the seatbelt. "You helped a boy today?"

"He had a fever," Grace said matter-of-factly. "And Mrs. Rori didn't notice. We had gym class next, and if didn't say anything he would've become sicker at the class."

"Mrs. Rori was asking a lot of questions." Penny started the car and pulled out of the bus loop. "What have I told you about drawing attention to us, Gracie?"

"Mira," Grace corrected.

"What?"

"My name is Mira this time."

"Well, we're alone and I'm calling you by your name. She also said you don't like playing with the other kids."

"I'm a new kid," Grace said, undeterred. "So they naturally don't like me." She shrugged. "Besides, I don't have time to know them."

There was no vindictiveness in her words, just a mild acceptance of her fate. It made Penny feel even worse. "Just be careful, okay? We don't need the attention."

"Okay." Grace looked at her. "Are you okay, Penny?"

"Huh?" Penny glanced at her briefly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Mrs. Rori upset you. That's why I interrupted you."

"Well, thank you for that Gracie. But I'll be all right."

"Maybe you shouldn't sleep on top of two guns," Grace said. Penny flinched at this. "Then you'll be able to sleep more than five hours."

Penny didn't know how she knew this, especially since she never let on to Grace that this was the case. "I'm fine, Grace. Let _me_ do the worrying, okay?"

Grace was silent for a long time. "_Do_ I need therapy, Penny?"

"You're fine, Grace," Penny said quickly. "Anything you want to tell a therapist, you can tell me." _Besides, we can't trust them,_ she added quietly.

"Maybe we _both_ need therapy," Grace said neutrally. She stared out the passenger window. "Everyone always asks about Mom, but I always answer that I don't know her. Then they look at me like I'm crazy. But they never ask about Dad. Isn't that weird?"

"Mom and Dad were wonderful people, Gracie." Penny's hands clenched around the steering wheel. "They're watching over us now, and they'll keep us safe."

"Then why can't we stay in one place?" Grace asked. Once again, there were no accusations in her tone, only childlike curiosity.

Penny took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Because their guidance alone isn't enough to protect us."

"Oh." Grace paused before she spoke again. "I love you, Penny."

"I love you too, Gracie." Penny reached over and took her hand. "And I swear nothing will ever hurt you."

* * *

"Shelby, you can take your lunch."

Penny smiled up at her boss, but her phone was ringing off the hook. "I'll go once I take this call."

"Sounds good." Her boss walked away from her cubicle.

Penny held onto her smile as she picked up the phone. "I&G services, this is Shelby, how may I help you?"

There was a strange hiss on the other line. Penny's heart leapt into her heart, but she forced herself to calm down. They received prank calls all the time, after all. "This is Shelby, how may I help you?"

"_Hello, Penny McCormick."_


	4. Chapter Two

Chapter Two

"_Love is what we were born with. Fear is what we learned here."_

_- Marianne Williamson_

* * *

Penny's hand curled tightly around the phone and cold knot of fear and doom formed in her stomach. It took her several long moments to steady her phone. "This is Shelby Webster, how may I help you?" she deliberately spoke her full fake name to the caller to emphasize the point of mistaken identity.

Only, the caller wasn't mistaken.

"_Shelby Webster doesn't exist."_ The man on the other line was very calm, collected. His tone was so strange, though. It sounded…_vicious_. _"You are Penny McCormick."_

"I know of no representative with that name," Penny said flatly, but she'd begun to shake in her seat. "I am Shelby, and I can help you if—"

"_Penny, let's skip the bullshit,"_ the man interrupted harshly. His voice had a trace of an accent. _"I know who you are. Just two months ago, your name was Hannah Marshall."_

Penny couldn't hide her whimper, and she squeezed her eyes shut. _Oh, God, they've got me again! What do I do?_ "I have no patience for prank calls," she said, but her voice was now shaky.

"_And _I _have no patience for __**murderers**__."_

Penny gasped, and her eyes flew open. A few drops of tears spilled out of her eyes. "Who are you?" she hissed into the phone.

The man didn't answer for a long time. Penny stood up from her chair and frantically looked around the other cubicles. There didn't seem to be anyone around that was suspicious, and her coworkers went about their business as normal.

Finally, she got her answer. _"Twinkle, twinkle, little star. How I wonder what you are…"_

Ice shot through her body. She slammed the phone down and reached for her purse. That song…that _voice_…it was all part of the reason she could never get a full night's sleep. Twinkle, twinkle, little star…that song would _plague_ Penny in her sleep. Most of the time it was a woman's voice who sang it to her, ever so softly. Other times it was a man's voice.

_This_ man's voice.

Penny took off running. It helped that her boss gave her the okay to go to lunch, because now she could leave undetected. As she reached her car though, she became aware of something even more horrible. As she focused on Grace's heartbeat in her head, _that_ menacing heartbeat rattled in her ears. It was that same one that terrified her after all these years, even though she didn't know who had it. All she knew was that it wasn't an ally and it was now _very_ close to her.

Penny didn't bother with speed limits. She couldn't trust the cops anyway. She flew down the highway towards Grace's school, thankful that it was the lunch hour at the elementary school. It would make retrieving her sister much easier, though she was prepared to storm her classroom to get her out.

She retrieved her handgun from the glove box as she text-messaged Grace's cell phone. _"The lambs are slaughtered. Sprout wings."_ It was her warning to tell her sister that they'd been found and that they needed to flee. It was such a shame, too. Getting this identity had cost her a great deal of money, and it would surely cost her more to get her next one.

There was something else, too. _Three weeks…_ She had to blink back tears. _We weren't even here three weeks. We don't have much time…_

Penny's cell phone buzzed and she pulled it out, not caring that she was driving. _"Stay grounded."_

It was Grace's way of saying 'calm down'. She felt like crying. Their lives were in danger and Grace was trying to _comfort_ her? Oh…she didn't deserve this love from her sister.

Penny came to a screeching halt alongside the cafeteria building of the school. Security was bound to notice her at this time of day, and she knew she had to formulate a plan. There was no way she was going to bring a gun into school, but she had to get her sister out of there. Then there was the issue of when the school called the cops on her. Oh, this was just too complicated…

The passenger door opened and closed abruptly. "Are we going?"

Penny jumped in her seat and gaped at Grace. "H-How did you get out here?"

Grace shrugged. "I walked out the door."

"B-But don't they—you know what, never mind." Penny started the engine and quickly took off from the curb. "Gracie, we have to move."

"Did the bad man call you?" she asked bluntly.

"Wha—bad man?" Penny quickly stepped on the brakes and put the car in park. She grabbed Grace by her shoulders. "Did someone try to take you?"

"A man called my cell phone," Grace said calmly. "At least I _think_ it was a man. Mrs. Rori got angry with me because I left the ringer on, but I—"

"What did he say to you?" Penny interrupted.

Grace shrugged. "Nothing."

"Gracie—"

"No, I'm serious Penny. He didn't say anything to me. All he did was sing 'Twinkle, twinkle, little star'. How'd he get my number?"

Penny swallowed thickly and tried not to panic. "Do you have your cell phone now, Grace?"

"Yeah." Grace pulled it out and handed it to her. Penny tossed the cell phone off the window and got the car moving again. Grace didn't look at all upset by the action. "So he won't call me now?"

"Hopefully not." Penny broke the speed limit all the way back to their house. "I'm so sorry about this, Gracie. You know the rules; pack only what you can—"

"Oh, that's easy," Grace said easily. "My suitcase is still packed."

Penny gave her a sideways glance. "…Really?"

"Well, I have to pack some of my teddy bears, but all my clothes are still packed. After the last move I thought it would just be easier to leave everything as is."

Grace said it to make things easier for Penny, but it still broke her heart. _Why_ should this little girl have to leave her suitcase packed! Oh, how she _hated_ the Morrison Center! Maybe if they had more useful powers than sensing heartbeats, then life would be easier! What she wouldn't give to be a _fire-starter_! Then she'd burn all the Morrison facilities straight to hell!

But…_this_ man terrified her. He had to be the one with that heartbeat, and she'd felt that heartbeat _before_ the Morrison Center started hunting them. Was he connected to them at all? Or was he acting on his own?

"So where will we be going next?" Grace asked her calmly.

"Portland," Penny blurted out without realizing it.

"Really? Isn't that in Maine? You were born in Maine, weren't you Penny?"

"So were you, Grace." But Penny had a very specific reason for why she wanted to go to Portland. Martin Quincy was there, and the phone calls to the both of them came _after_ he visited. And how did he know her name was actually Penny? She didn't like it one bit, and she intended to squeeze Martin for all the information that he had. Maybe, she would be able to find out more about the Morrison Center, too.

They arrived back at the house, and Grace ran to get her suitcase and all her stuffed animals. Unfortunately, Penny had unpacked a few things, confident that this new identity of hers would keep her safe for longer than it actually did. She yanked off her work suit and pulling on a pair of brown sweat pants and a red tank top. Thankfully she only had a few clothes to pack, and she didn't bother with the work suits. She'd made a mistake in choosing a job with as much customer service as this one did. She wouldn't make that mistake again.

Penny finished with the packing and pulled her things out of her bedroom, while hoisting her guns underneath her arms. All the while keeping her ears open. She sensed every heartbeat that was close by, trying to find a suspicious person. For the most part all she could sense was her neighbors, and then there was that horribly oppressive heartbeat in her head. It _had_ to have belonged to that stranger! They had to move faster.

"Backseat, Gracie," Penny directed when her little sister tried to get into the passenger seat. It would be easier to shield her when she wasn't in the front seat.

"Okay." Grace sounded disappointed, but she climbed into the backseat with no complaints. Penny stored the larger guns in the trunk and put the two handguns she had at the floor of the front seat. She would have to be careful while driving as to not get a cop's attention. None of her guns were bought legally, and she didn't have a permit. But, applying for a permit would leave a paper trail, just as getting her driver's license did.

She did all of this in the cover of their garage and she quickly pulled out and into the road. Neighbors didn't look at all suspicious, though one or two did a double-take when they saw their car loaded with personal belongings. Penny didn't care. She stepped on the gas and left this street behind.

* * *

They drove all day, until the sky started to darken. The whole time Penny kept her senses open and clear, trying to pick up anyone suspicious, and thankfully nothing seemed out of the ordinary. After the first three hours of driving, she couldn't even hear that heartbeat that constantly scared her. It allowed her to relax. Somewhat.

"So how long before we reach Portland?" Grace asked from the backseat. She was playing with an Etch-A-Sketch.

"Well, we left the state of Virginia an hour ago," Penny said. She kept looking in her rearview mirror to see if anyone was following her. "We're going to drive through the Appalachians and avoid the main roads until we reach Maine."

"Oh, okay. Hey, look!" Grace looked out the window. "Horses!"

It was a farm alongside the highway, and horses were grazing. "That's nice, Gracie."

"Do you think we could get a horse? You know, when we reach Maine? Maine's pretty barren, isn't it?"

"Grace, it's not practical for us to get a horse." Even as she said this though, Penny smiled a little. "Where would we put it?"

"But it could help," Grace said. Even with her persistence, her tone remained very neutral. "If they come after us again, we could hop on the horse and ride away."

"Cars outrun horses, Grace."

"…Yeah. That's true." Disappointment flickered across her face briefly before it became serene again and she looked out the window. "Well, can we get a horse after we get rid of them?"

It wasn't that easy at all. The Morrison Center was almost like a cult, and it involved a large group of people. Killing one member wouldn't stop them all from coming after them. Penny knew of that _quite _well.

"_And _I _have no patience for __**murderers**__."_

"Sure, Gracie." Penny glanced over her shoulder, dispelling that horrible voice from her head by focusing on her sister. "Once we become safe enough, I'll buy you your very own horse."

Grace smiled at her. "Thank you, Penny." But the smile lacked luster. It were as though Grace knew deep down that Penny's proposal might never happen.

"I'm hungry!" Penny said suddenly, looking back at the road. She scouted for a rest stop sign. "Would you like to get something to eat before we find a motel?"

"I would _love_ it!" Grace said with surprising enthusiasm. "Do you think they'll sell pancakes now?"

Penny laughed. "We can always ask, Gracie."

They found a rest stop with a restaurant, and to Grace's delight they _did _have pancakes on the dinner menu. Penny self-conscious patted her pocket, which held all of their money. After the Morrison Center traced her through bank records, when Grace was just two, she knew she couldn't do that again. But it didn't help that lacking a bank account forced her to get an account with her company because they only gave electronic paychecks. It just left more clues for the Morrison Center to pick up on and find her.

_I hate technology._ Penny fiddled with a French fry on her plate. _If I lived twenty-odd years ago, it would be easier to hide…_

"Hey Penny," Grace said, lathering her pancakes in syrup. "Do you know what this reminds me of?"

"What?"

"When you were a waitress."

Penny couldn't help but laugh, and rubbed a hand over her face. "Come on, Grace, that was a disaster! I was paid so little and I had to deal with some terrible people! And my name—I actually had to call myself Starr!"

"_Sharr_," Grace corrected.

"What?"

"Your name was Sharr. Mine was Hope."

Penny groaned. "It wasn't the best place for us to be, Gracie." But inwardly, she felt her heart clench. Being a waitress hadn't been ideal, but that identity had lasted her just a little over a year. Longer than all the other ones she had. "Just eat your pancakes."

"That trucker's still looking at us," Grace said bluntly, shoving a mouthful of pancake into her mouth.

Penny stiffened. "What?"

"There's a trucker sitting at the counter. He's been looking at us for fifteen minutes."

Penny quickly looked at the diner counter. A bearded man in dirty clothes quickly adverted his eyes. She narrowed in on his heartbeat and she found it very erratic.

Penny looked at Grace. "Why didn't you tell me he was looking at us?"

Grace shrugged. "I thought you noticed."

Penny tossed a fifty on the table. "We have to go."

"But…" Grace looked at her pancakes forlornly.

"I'll get you more pancakes later, Gracie. But we have to go!"

"…Okay."

They quickly departed the diner and Grace quickly jumped into the backseat. Penny opened the driver's door, but reached across the seat to grab one of her handguns. As she slid out to climb properly into her seat though, a hand caught her shoulder. "Hello."

Penny could smell body odor, and it turned her stomach. She looked at Grace, but her little sister didn't look alarmed. "Why are you touching me?"

"Hey, don't be so defensive." The hand on her shoulder tightened. "I just couldn't help but notice seeing two pretty little girls that don't look like they're from around here. I figured you two were by yourselves, and sure enou—"

Penny spun around and jabbed the barrel of the handgun under his chin. "Take your hands off me and leave us alone," she hissed. "Or I'll kill you where you stand."

The trucker grinned lopsidedly. "H-Hey, no use being so crazy. I was just checking on you."

"Well, we're fine. Now, get the hell away from us."

He laughed awkwardly. "C'mon, sweetheart. You ain't gonna kill me with so many people around."

Penny cocked the firing pin. "All I have to do is scream 'rape', and it's justifiable homicide."

"You—" suddenly, the man's face lit up in pain. He jumped away from her and grabbed at his chest. "D-Did—you shot me! YOU SHOT ME!"

He wasn't shot at all, but his screaming was drawing attention. Penny jumped into the car and sped out of the rest stop parking lot. She drove several miles up the road before she pulled off into a wooded area and stopped. She popped the trunk and withdrew two fresh license plates to slap on the car. It took a few minutes, but she wanted to remain undetected just in case somebody called the cops and gave a description of her car.

Grace was silent throughout all of this. She finally spoke when Penny got back into the car. "Penny?"

"Yeah?" Penny restarted the car and pulled back onto the highway.

"How could you have shot that guy when your gun has the safety on?"

"I don't know. I guess he thought I shot him." Even though Penny always kept a lot of guns around, she somewhat kept to safety measures and left the safeties on her guns. Grace had enough sense though to _not_ play with guns.

Grace shook her head slightly. "What an idiot."

"Yes, he was." But Penny was uneasy. Why did the man react that way? He acted like Penny attacked him, which she didn't. Unless someone else did? But nobody else had been there!

_This is very strange. Then again, what part of __**any**__ of this is normal?_

* * *

"_Twinkle, twinkle, little star."_

"_No."_ Penny groaned, and tried to force her eyes open. It was that accursed song again, but it was thankfully not sung by that man. It was the woman's voice again, but that didn't make her feel any better.

"_How I wonder what you are. Up above the world so high. Like a diamond in the sky…"_

Darkness surrounded Penny, and she felt sick. She knew she was asleep, knew she was having a nightmare. But she couldn't wake up. She was stuck here.

That song kept repeating itself over and over again accompanied by a tune akin to a music box. Penny waved her arms in front of her, but she couldn't clear the darkness. She couldn't move from her spot. _"Why can't you leave me alone?"_ she screamed. _"Why can't I have a NORMAL LIFE?"_

There was a flicker to the darkness in front of her. Then, a whole image was visible. It was a woman, and she was wearing a long, flowing white gown. She stood many feet away, and her back was to Penny. She seemed to have dark hair, though, and it swooshed around her as she swayed from side to side. The horrible singing was coming from this woman.

"_Who are you?"_ Penny shouted. _"Why are you tormenting me?"_

Suddenly, the woman abruptly disappeared. The darkness faded around Penny into a subtle golden glow. Fear and anger seemed to be banished from her heart. She sighed as positive emotions flooded her being, enveloped her like a hug. She closed her eyes and relaxed. For the first time since this whole nightmare of her life started, she felt safe. _"Thank you," _she murmured softly, to no one in particular.

She was surprised to get a response, in the form of a richly deep man's voice. _"You're welcome."_

* * *

"We'll be entering the Appalachian Mountains shortly," Penny announced. She looked at Grace through the rearview. "Are you set with bathroom breaks?"

"Yeah," Grace said. She flipped through a book. "I'm glad you slept easier last night, Penny."

"…How did you know I did?" Penny asked quietly.

"Because _I _woke _you_ up this morning. That's never happened before."

"Hmm." Penny focused on the road. "That was a problem, though. I was hoping to start out earlier than seven."

"It's fine. We'll make it to Maine." Grace glanced out the window briefly. "Do they have horses on the Appalachian Mountains?"

"I…don't know."

"How about mountain lions?"

"Probably."

"How about mountain tigers?"

"Mountain tigers?" Penny shook her head. "Tigers can't live in this region, Gracie! It's too cold for them!"

"Oh." Grace thought it for a minute. "How about bears?"

"Bears can live here."

"I wonder what a bear's heartbeat sounds like."

It was all small talk, and it kept Penny occupied as they began their trek through the Appalachian Mountains. She was unnerved that she wasn't seeing a lot of cars on the road. It was still morning, but that didn't explain the empty highway. Was it a holiday, or something?

Something else bothered her. Ever since she woke up she sensed something wrong with her own heartbeat. She could hear it clearly, but it sounded like it had a ripple to it. Or even an echo. Was she having a heart attack? But she didn't feel any different. And Grace didn't seem to sense any differences, and the girl loved to point out irregularities.

"_Penny, you're having a panic attack."_

"_I know, Grace."_

_It's fine, _she told herself unconvincingly. _You're reading into it too much._

"Oh, look!" Grace said suddenly. She wasn't wearing her seatbelt, and she turned completely around to look out the back window. "There's a car!"

Penny looked at her driver mirror. Yes, there was a big black SUV rounding the corner behind them. "I can see it." She almost felt relieved to finally have some company on the road.

"Why is he driving so fast?" Grace asked.

"_What_?" Penny looked again. The SUV had suddenly picked up speed and was speeding up the road right behind them. Right AT them! "Grace, put on your seatbelt!"

Grace complied, though she didn't look concerned. Penny slammed her foot on the gas, but the SUV had more momentum. It slammed hard into the back of their car. Grace yelped and nearly launched forward, but the seatbelt did its job and pinned her to the seat.

Penny pressed the gas pedal all the way into the floor, but the SUV was right up on her. She couldn't even see anything out of her rearview mirror, because this black menacing car took up all the space. "Gracie, are you all right?"

"I-I'm fine." Grace sounded a little shaky, but the girl looked a hell of a lot calmer than Penny. "Are they the bad guys?"

"Yes, Grace. Put your head down!" she screamed when she saw movement in the SUV's passenger side. A man stuck a handgun out and opened fire on the car. Penny screamed as their back window was shattered. The bullets even pieced the windshield. By some miracle though, none of the bullets hit her.

Not knowing what to do, Penny grabbed a handgun and handed it to Grace. "Hang onto this, sweetheart! If anything happens, you'll have to use it!"

"…Okay." Grace still sounded so calm, but it didn't make Penny feel any better. She hoisted the other gun up, while trying to steer the car.

The SUV suddenly backed off. But Penny didn't lift her foot off the gas. She kept her eyes on the SUV and desperately looked for an exit ramp, or a dirt road. _Anything_ to get out of this!

The SUV picked up speed again and started driving alongside them. Then the driver spun the wheel and sideswiped them.

Penny screamed, and swerved to avoid the neighboring cliffside. "Oh, my God! _Oh, my God_!" The momentum brought her car out into the middle of the road. The SUV came up on the opposite side and sideswiped her again.

Right into the guardrail above a steep line of trees.

"Gracie, hang on! OH, MY GOD!" Penny screamed, as their car slid into the trees below.


	5. Chapter Three

This is what I get for working all week with only one day off. No time to write and miss a self-imposed deadline.

Chapter Three

"_For it was not into my ear you whispered, but into my heart. It was not my lips you kissed, but my soul."_

_- Judy Garland_

* * *

Hector was jolted awake by a violent shock of pain that reverberated his body. Confused, he opened his senses and assessed his body. No, nothing was wrong. He was rested, safe beneath the earth. Then, why was he in pain?

_Penny_. He was awake in an instant. Something had to be wrong with Penny. Fear gripped his heart, in addition to regretful relief. Yesterday he'd sensed her danger when a man with ill-intentions tried to corner her. That she had a gun to defend herself didn't matter to Hector; he used Penny's eyes and struck out at the man to force him to leave her alone.

He'd heard her nightmares too, and he knew she'd been having them for awhile. He'd reached out to her to pull her out of the nightmare and into a more restful sleep. He'd been very surprised that he was able to make a perfect connection to this woman to give her aid. That only meant one thing.

_She's mine_.

But now she was hurt, and it seemed very serious. He focused on the specific areas of his body to tell how injured she was. His head was aching terribly, and there was an unbearable burning sensation from his abdominal region; his ribs. Did the Morrison Center find her?

Hector tried to connect to Penny again, but her mind was blank. She'd been knocked unconscious, and without her awareness. He didn't know how to connect to Grace at all, so he didn't know how injured the little girl was. All he knew was that she was hurt…_and _she was close by.

And the sun was still up.

Hector cursed to himself for a long moment, before he called forth his powers to cast a shield over Penny. It helped to give him a bird's eye view of the area. Penny had been run off the road and crashed deep through a dense brush of trees. Penny was slumped over the steering wheel, blood seeping from a deep wound on her head and trickling down her face. He couldn't assess her injuries further, though. He quickly looked at Grace, and she didn't seem as injured, although a trickle of blood ran down her chin from her mouth, as though she bit her lip before impact.

Above them on the road, the would-be killers were scanning the trees, armed to the teeth with guns. But, Hector couldn't stop them without a body to see them and it infuriated him. All he could do was shield the sisters and cast blinders over these assassins' eyes. Then he called forth dark rain clouds, so that he would be able to rise faster. _Wait for me, _päläfertiil. _I will save you…_

* * *

"…ny! _Penny_! Please wake up!"

Penny groaned, and immediately felt nauseas. Pain she was unfamiliar with filled her senses. She tasted blood in her mouth, and it was with great difficulty that she opened her eyes. Everything was blurry and unfocused. She could hear many heartbeats rattling in her head. Or, maybe it was because of a head injury. Oh, she didn't know…

"Penny!"

_This_ voice forced Penny to snap out of it. "Gra—" she tried to sit up, but pain vibrated through her body once more and she began dry-heaving, unable to cope with it. She forced herself to calm down and relaxed herself. "Grace."

"You wouldn't wake up." Grace had crawled up to the front seat, even as it was mangled. She was bleeding from the lip, but she looked more concerned for Penny. "And you're bleeding. Your heart sounds strange, too. Are you okay?"

"Mmm…" Penny tried to assess her injuries, but the pain was too severe. The strongest pain came from her head and her chest. Her ribs might be broken. "I'm f-fine…" she wasn't, but she didn't want to scare Grace. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah. I guess you were right about the seat belt." Penny vaguely noticed that Grace was sitting at an angle in the seat, and she was bracing her feet on the dashboard. "That was a massive crash."

"It sure was." Her memories returned to her abruptly. They'd been driven off the road, no doubt by the Morrison Center. Since they'd been on a highway in the Appalachians, it was possible nobody saw the crash, and nobody would be looking for them. Nobody, that is, except for those bastards. "Gracie, do you still have your gun?"

Grace shrugged. "It flew out of my hand and out the windshield."

"Out the windshield?" Penny lifted her head higher. She noticed that there was a large hole in the center of the windshield. She also noticed the both of them were being pelted mercilessly by rain. She felt around her own lap for her gun and thankfully found it. "Gracie, take this."

Grace took the gun. "Are the bad guys coming?"

"I think so." She was very surprised they hadn't been caught already. How far had they fallen from the main road? "I'll protect you."

"Can you move?" Grace asked.

Penny shifted a little, but hissed in pain. "No, I don't think I can. But we'll be all right. My cell phones in my pocket. Get it out and see if it's broken or not."

"Are we calling the cops?" Grace crawled over to her and gingerly searched through Penny's pocket. She was very careful of her older sister, aware that she was seriously injured and not wanting to do anything to agitate potential injury sites.

"We…we might be." Penny didn't trust the cops to protect them, but their car was totaled and she couldn't move. If they were left out here, at the mercy of the elements _and_ of that society, then they would surely die. "If we c-call an ambulance, the bad guys can't act against us."

"Okay." Grace found the phone and tested it. "It still works, but the signals all the way down. I'll go climb a tree." Without waiting for Penny to reply, Grace began crawling towards the passenger door.

"Grace—wait a minute!" Penny waved a hand at her little sister, but didn't have the strength to grab her. "That's too dangerous!"

"But if we just sit here, the bad guys will get us." Grace gave her a leveled look. "You're hurt, Penny, and I'm worried about your heart."

Penny stilled, and a cold numbing fear came over her. "My heart?"

"It doesn't sound right. I won't let them get to you, I promise." Grace turned to leave, but stopped. She reached back across the seat and kissed Penny on the cheek. "I'll save you."

Penny couldn't say anything more, but the gnawing dark feeling began to form with her fear as Grace climbed out of the car. Thankfully they were at the bottom of the hill, although there were too many trees surrounding them. She tried once again to move, but bright spots filled her already hazy vision. She squeezed her eyes shut and gritted her teeth. _Please be safe, Gracie. Oh, why did this have to happen to us?_

She was also worried about her heart. Now that she gave it full attention, the thump of each beat was incredibly off. She couldn't keep track of it, and the sound became more erratic with her panic. _What's happening to me? Am I dying? Wha—_

Loud gunshots suddenly ripped through the area, piercing the surrounding trees. "Gracie!" Penny shrieked hoarsely. "Gracie, RUN! They—"

Penny felt a hard impact into her side; she didn't hear the gunshots that belted the star. But the pain came swift, and she fell into the darkness of raw agony.

* * *

Hugging the cell phone to her chest to shield it from the rain, Grace chose a tree close to the car to climb. She shoved the phone into her pocket, but she held onto the gun as she awkwardly began to climb the tree. She felt power behind the weight of the gun, even as she was aware of the danger that lurked around them. She could feel multiple heartbeats all around the swarm of trees, and most of them pumped with ill-intentions. She barely paid them any attention. Her focus was on Penny's heartbeat. It didn't sound normal at all.

_It's okay. I can save her._

The thought gave Grace some bravery as she climbed higher. The rain didn't bother her at all. She didn't like how dark the clouds were overhead, though.

After climbing for a few minutes, Grace rechecked the phone. Tiny bars wavered slightly, but it indicated a slight signal, which was better than none. She quickly dialed 9-1-1. "Hi, we crashed our car—"

Shouting from below interrupted her, and she realized she was overly exposed on such a barren tree. Gunshots burst through the air, and she could hear them impact the tree she hung onto. Grace yelped and accidentally dropped the phone, clinging to the tree and trying to shimmy around it to avoid the fire. It didn't occur to her that any of this was abnormal or crazy. The fear of possibly dying didn't really affect her. She just didn't want to get hit.

Suddenly, she heard Penny screaming from below. More gunshots hammered the air, and Grace gasped at the sudden acceleration of Penny's heart. _She was shot!_

"Penny!" Uncaring of the danger, Grace began to frantically climb down the tree. She aimed her gun at the direction of the other gunshots and randomly fired. She didn't know if she hit anyone, but it didn't matter. She had to get to her sister!

As she reached the ground, she didn't notice the abrupt cease of fire. She focused solely on Penny's heartbeat, which continued to beat on in irregularity. She raised the gun shakily and looked around herself, trying to find some of the bad guys. She couldn't let them get to them and hurt them any further!

As she edged back towards the car, Grace gasped and clutched a hand to her head. Penny…her heartbeat was _out_ of the car! She was outside, and nearby! She was all right!

"Penny!" she cried out, unmindful of the danger they were in. She rushed off frantically in the direction of Penny's heartbeat, feeling it get closer and closer. _She's okay! She's okay!_

"_Where is your sister?"_

Grace stopped dead in her tracks, nearly slipping on the wet leaves. Somebody had just spoken to her, but there wasn't anyone around. Even with the loud rain she heard the voice with crystal-clear clarity, even better than her own.

Most of all, it was a _man's_ voice. One she didn't recognize. And Penny's heartbeat was still very close…

There was a 'whoosh' and something fell hard behind Grace. She spun around, hearing Penny's heartbeat in such close proximity and expecting to see her.

What she saw instead caused her to drop her gun. "You're not Penny!" she shouted accusatorily.

* * *

A cold numbing shock overtook Hector. His vision shook and he pressed a hand to his head. Colors had not returned to him, but the darkness and anticipation of finally meeting Penny McCormick was getting to him.

And now…it hadn't occurred to him before when he laid eyes upon this child in a photograph. But now he was looking at her real self, her short but dark hair, her dark eyes shining with an inner light displaying a pure soul. She…all at once memories overtook him, and it made him so _dizzy_.

"_Can I say goodnight to _Emä_?"_

"Who are you?" the authoritative nature of this child's voice snapped him into full awareness. He opened his eyes long enough to see the girl—Grace McCormick—pick up her gun. "What have you done with Penny?"

_Penny_. Yes, she was still out here, and injured. Grace looked fine except for the cut on her lip. He forced himself to calm down and look Grace right in the eye. "Do not be alarmed. I too, am looking for Penny, _csitri_." To say the Carpathian word was a reflex to Hector, and he winced inwardly. Pain was threatening to choke him, and he looked away from Grace. _Maintain control, Hector. This little girl is not Fatima. She is the sister of your lifemate."_

"Why?" Grace demanded. She jabbed the barrel of the handgun into Hector's stomach. "Were you shooting at us? Where is my sister?"

He hadn't been the one shooting. It'd been those bastards who'd run them off the road. The shielding spell had worked beautifully, until Grace climbed a tree and unknowingly exited the sphere of protection. The sisters were only lucky that Hector had finally been able to rise, and quickly disposed of the assassins before they could do more harm.

Hector reached down and took the gun from Grace with no effort. "Children shouldn't be handling such items."

Grace stared straight up at him. Purity still remained in her eyes, but so was bravery. "Do you think you scare me? I already know how scared you are. I can _feel _it. And I know my sister is around here somewhere, so tell me where she is!"

So the little girl _was_ a psychic. Hector didn't think of the future implications this would mean for her. Instead, he concentrated on the power of his voice. "I will not harm you, child. I will never harm you. And I will never harm your sister. But we must find her, because she's hurt. You want to help your sister, don't you?"

He was using compulsion behind his words to make Grace obey. Children were easy to manipulate, particularly with memories, and he could sense that this child had far too many bad memories than should have to.

Grace's dark eyes glazed over with understanding for a few moments. Suddenly, clarity snapped back into them and she jumped away. "What are you doing?"

Hector blinked. "What?" _She broke the compulsion…_

"Your heart!" Grace exclaimed. "There's something wrong with you! Just now your heart, it…" she rubbed a hand through her hair in confusion. "You were going to do something _bad_, weren't you?"

"Grace." He kept his voice calm, but removed the compulsion. "I want to help you—"

Hector lurched, and grabbed at his chest. Something was terribly wrong. _"Penny!"_

"Penny!" Grace cried out at the same time. She spun around and looked back towards the car. "She's still there? But…" she looked at Hector in horror. "I thought that…_Penny_!" she rushed back to the car.

Hector was faster than the child. She was so close by, and his world was still full of gray. But he had to know! He HAD to know! He had to save her, but more than anything…was she his lifemate? Was his search finally over?

_Please, please, please let fate be kind to me!_

It took not even two seconds to reach the car and rip the driver's side door right from its hinges. But in those short seconds it felt like an eternity. His vision was shaking, the darkness was roaring, and the world was dark and black and gray from the rain and of his own making…

Then he ripped the car door off. And saw _the color red_ for the first time in six hundred years.

Red was splashed everywhere, all over the driver's seat and dashboard. And it covered the body slumped over the steering wheel. It stuck to the dark brown hair spilling out in the most beautiful curls in the world. It hung dry on naturally tanned hands and face.

Colors reverberated the whole world. Hector sucked in a breath, and stumbled back. It exploded on the small slate gray car. On the dark green leaves. All over a world just moments ago he had seen in gray.

"Penny!" Grace didn't seem fazed by the fact that Hector had ripped a car door right off a car. She rushed to her sister's side, tears filling her eyes. "Oh, my God! Penny, speak to me, please! Wake up!"

Hector returned to reality. He gently nudged Grace aside and snapped the seatbelt off, carefully plucking the injured body from the car. Her injuries were far more severe than he'd thought they were. In addition to a gaping head wound and broken ribs, one of the bullets fired had pierced Penny's side. All of this would have to be taken care of.

"She needs help!" Grace said desperately. She was crying, but Hector noted that she was rather calm for a child in this predicament. "Do you have a cell phone?"

Hector cradled Penny to his chest, but reached for Grace. He caressed her check. "Sleep now, _csitri_."

Grace didn't argue this time. She immediately fainted and fell against him. Holding both sisters tightly, Hector took off into the sky and headed high into the Appalachians. He tried not to be enraptured by the beauty of this land, and of the world. _It worked. It truly worked…_

He flew very quickly and deliberately, spotting a ranch-like cabin in a deeply secluded area. It was owned by Tariq, of course, and now it came in handy. If anyone did happen upon this cabin, they would assume someone rich owned it and would vacate on fear of invading private property.

There were multiple bedrooms upstairs, and Hector gently put Grace in a comforting children's room. Her lip was still cut though, and he made a note to take care of that later.

But Penny had the more pressing injuries.

Hector took her to the room next to Grace's and carefully laid her on the bed. She was still unconscious, and her injuries were grave. He would have to go inside her to heal her, and extract the bullet. Then he would have to replenish her blood.

It was a struggle to maintain focus, though. He couldn't help but be enchanted by her beauty, both inside and out. And he couldn't help the relief that rattled his heart. "I've found you." he stroked the back of his hand over her cheek. "I finally found you…"

The gash on her head caught his attention first and foremost, and he leaned forward and gently licked the cut lining the top of her forehead. The taste of her blood was very refreshing, unlike anything other blood he'd ever had. It was becoming a struggle to maintain self-control around her, but the nature of her injuries _did_ help him to keep his focus. He did a further examination of her body, uncovering a multitude of ugly bruises and scratches. As he examined each external injury, he was once again distracted by how soft her skin was, and had to block out her beauty to focus on her wounds. He couldn't help but notice though how tense her body was, even in sleep. It was as though she were poised to flee even while unconscious. Now that he could finally feel emotions, Hector felt strongly the grief he couldn't have when he first learned of her, and her tragic life.

_She's suffered far too much, and she never deserved it. Her or her little sister. This insanity __**must**__ stop!_

He found her bullet wound in her side, and gingerly prodded the area. It felt like the bullet had passed through, but he wouldn't know for certain until he saw for himself. Until then, the wound would have to remain open. Once Penny's superficial wounds were healed, Hector began to concentrate. He became a force of light and for a moment he hovered in the air, above the body of his lifemate. Then he quickly entered her body to repair the damage inside. His first order of business was the bullet wound. To his relief, the bullet _had_ passed right through Penny and had somehow missed her liver. But there was still a lot of muscle and tissue damage, and the wound was still leaking blood. He quickly repaired the damage and assessed the rest of her body. Four of her ribs were broken—he took meticulous care in repairing each bone, and cleaning up fragments that had broken off. Some of her organs were bruised, but that was a quick fix. He noticed her heart, which was thankfully injury-free, and how the rhythms were matching his own. They were in synch, even though they hadn't exchanged blood yet.

Hector moved to her head. Three teeth had been knocked out, but he had no experience with replacing teeth. The most he could do was keep the roots alive and healthy in her mouth so that more could possibly be done later. Then he finally moved onto the rest of her head. She had a mild concussion, and it was unwise that she was not awake in this condition. But he could sense no lasting long-term damage and set about removing the concussion.

Penny was stirring awake, and Hector cursed himself for not putting her under compulsion. He quickly finished repairing her injuries and withdrew from her as her dark eyelashes fluttered. He settled alongside her on the bed and with a wave of his hand lights dimly turned on, thankful to see the color return to her face and some of the pain erased from her expression. But, she didn't know him, and she would no doubt be alarmed by everything.

Penny came back to full awareness in confusion. She groaned, and tried to roll onto her side, but she felt so incredibly weak. She didn't understand why she was feeling so comfortable and _safe_. She also didn't understand why she wasn't in any pain. She just felt drained of strength. What was going on?

She opened her eyes. And gaped. She wasn't stuck out in her destroyed car, with rain pelting her. She was in a warm, homey bedroom akin to a frontiersman's home. She tried to sit up, but she couldn't. All she do was shift around on the bed she was on.

She stilled. Wait….she was_ alone_. "Grace!" it came out as a wheezy croak, and she tried to sit up.

"Grace is safe, _sívamet_."

Penny stiffened, and looked to her left. A man was lying beside her. Panic remained strong in her system, but her body unwillingly relaxed. Pale hazel eyes held her own, and she swallowed uneasily. The way he was looking at her…was it possible to look at another person this way? She could see possession in his gaze, and…no, she didn't want to think about it. She tore her eyes away from his handsome, perfect face to look at the rest of him. Short dark hair seemed to be plastered to his head, as though it were soaking wet. But the rest of him was dry. He was clothed in dark, shapeless clothing, but he was close enough that she could feel some of the ridges of his body. It felt like she was pressed into a flat surface; he didn't seem to have any body fat.

And his heart…she looked at his chest. She could feel it; it _felt_ the same as hers. How was that even possible? Heartbeats all sounded different for each individual person. But _his_ wasn't any different.

Penny took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She didn't like that she couldn't move her body. "Do…I know you?" She hadn't meant to say it. She wanted to ask who he was, but it didn't come out.

The man's mouth quirked slightly, showing a small smile. The slight gesture unexpectedly caused Penny's stomach to squirm. "Your heart knows me. Your soul knows me. But I guess it won't hurt to properly introduce myself." He sat up slightly, his eyes never leaving hers. "My name is Hector Lacuna, and I've been looking for you for a long time."

"Looking for you." The implications meant that he was with the Morrison Center. But, Penny didn't feel threatened or fearful of him. Truthfully, she'd never felt so safe in her whole life. "H-How…" she shook her head. "Where am I? Where's my sister, and…" she felt dizzy, and closed her eyes.

"I rescued you from your car, and the assassins, _päläfertiil_," Hector assured her. "And Grace is asleep in the next room. Do not worry, you both are safe."

No, they weren't. Safety wasn't part of their lives. But, Penny could feel Grace. Her heart rhythm was steady, indicating she was in a deep sleep, and it was very close by. "W-We have to—"

"Go, Penny?" Hector sounded slightly amused. "Where can you go to in your condition? You lost a lot of blood, _sívamet_. Not to mention you haven't been sleeping properly. Why don't you rest here for a little while?"

She wanted to know _why_ she didn't feel as injured as she did before. She was fairly certain she'd been shot, but it didn't feel like it anymore. But something in Hector's words stopped her before she even spoke. She took notice not of his words, but of his _voice_. It sounded so familiar to her, almost the same as the man who called her. But Hector's voice…

"_You're welcome."_

Penny's eyes widened, and she gaped at Hector. "Y-You…"

Hector reached down and brushed her hair from her face. "I am with you, Penny. Sleep, _sívamet_, and do not worry about anything."

She suddenly felt so very tired. Her eyes closed, but she couldn't deny the alarm coursing through her. Yes…this was the same voice. He'd somehow entered her mind and pulled her free of her nightmare? But how was such a thing even possible?

"_It is because we are lifemates."_

She had no time to question this. It was the last thing she heard before she went under.

Hector held a hand to her cheek very tenderly for a moment. The temptation of her mouth was so incredibly strong now, it took him by surprise. He sat up fully and slowly pulled his shirt off, keeping his mind focused on the compulsion of sleep. Grace was easier to control, because she was a child. Though neither sister seemed to have mental powers, he couldn't take any chances of alarming his lifemate.

_His _lifemate. Penny McCormick was truly his, though it shamed him that he had found her so late, after everything she suffered, but there was nothing he could do about it. Other than fix the present and make her future safe and pleasant for her.

He reached for her and gathered her into his arms. Her life was hardly in danger anymore, but she needed blood. And there no denying the healing antigens in Carpathian blood. He cradled her head to his chest, and lengthened a fingernail. He drew a cut directly over his heart, and positioned her mouth at the wound. It would be their first blood exchange, and it would take two more to turn her. But this was very necessary; both for her, and for him.

Still, he was taken off-guard by the powerful eroticism by the contact of her soft lips against his flesh, drinking of his blood. He gasped quietly, and hugged her gently to him, closing his eyes as he felt his blood flow out of him through his wound, and into her mouth, into her body. It was such an intimate moment for him, this sharing of blood, that he felt tears leap into his eyes. He hadn't cried in centuries. Not since Fatima died.

A glow of euphoria clouded over his mind, and words sprung upon his consciousness. They began to formulate on his tongue. "_Te avio päläfertiilam." _He immediately knew they were the ritual words for lifemates. His heartbeat accelerated at the knowledge of these words. _"Éntölam kuulua, avio päläfertiilam. Ted kuuluak, kacad, kojed._ _Élidamet andam._ _Pesämet andam._ _Uskolfertiilamet andam._ _Sívamet andam._ _Sielamet andam._ _Ainamet andam._ _Sívamet kuuluak kaik että a ted."_

He could feel the threads of their bond binding their hearts together tightly. He struggled to maintain focus. _"Ainaak olenszal sívambin. Te élidet ainaak pide minan. Te avio päläfertiilam. Ainaak sívamet jutta oleny. Ainaak terád vigyázak."_

It was done; he knew deep down it was. Now he was part of this woman, and she was part of him. Once they completed the ritual, which would be the binding of their _bodies_, then they would be a true bond. But, it was far too soon for that to happen. Penny was still weak, and she didn't trust him. It would certainly take time, but he had the patience for it.

Satisfied that Penny had taken enough blood, Hector laid her back down on the bed and sealed his wound. He leaned over her and brushed very light kisses across her brow. "You are mine, _sívamet_, and I will keep you safe."

He needed to feed, to replenish the blood he'd given. It was with great reluctance that he left Penny's side. He threw powerful shields over the cabin and took off into the skies, sensing human campers within the vicinity. As he flew further away from the cabin, he felt the loss of Penny, but it humbled him. He found her. After all this time, after everything that he'd lost…he found his lifemate.

"_I am happy for you, friend."_

Hector was only slightly startled by the intrusion in his head. _"Our system worked, Tariq. Penny McCormick is indeed my lifemate."_

"_This will bring relief to the other males,"_ Tariq said. _"But you must be careful. Penny and her sister have been hunted for years, and are high on the Morrison Center's watch-list. They aren't looking to experiment on these girls; they have 'kill-on-sight' orders."_

"_Does it relate to Penny killing the butchers who murdered her mother?"_ Hector asked sardonically.

"_No doubt. But keep your senses open and protect your woman. Once I relay the news back to the Prince, I will join you to lend assistance."_

"_I appreciate it. However, Grace is too young to induce colors."_

"_It wasn't my intention to check her,"_ Tariq responded coldly. _"But the females are being hunted. Not to mention phone records showed an unknown individual called Penny McCormick while she was at work. It appears she is in hunt of a certain man who might be linked to the Morrison Center."_

"_I know of this, and I intend to check this Martin as well. And if he is tied to them, then he will pay."_

"_Best of luck to you in the meantime."_

* * *

Penny's eyes snapped open and she quickly sat up. Fear gripped her heart. Along with…_grief_. She was completely confused. _What's going on?_

It was daylight outside; she knew this much. But she was this horrible feeling of isolation and aloneness in her heart. It was frightening. She closed her eyes and listened carefully. Her heart…it wasn't echoing anymore. But it didn't exactly sound like her own heartbeat anymore.

_It's because of that __**man**__._

Penny tossed aside the covers and quickly got out of bed. She didn't know who that Hector was, or why his heartbeat was the same as hers, but it scared her. And she didn't like that she felt so safe around him. He was a stranger and he _spoke_ to her inside her head!

_It doesn't matter! You need to grab Gracie, and run!_


	6. Chapter Four

Chapter Four

"_Avoiding danger is no safer in the long run than outright exposure. The fearful are caught as often as the bold."_

_- Helen Keller_

* * *

Penny slowly opened the bedroom door, wondering if that strange man was somehow lurking around outside. She poked her head out into the hallway. The coast was clear.

She zeroed in on Grace's heartbeat, which was still very steady. It was coming from the room next to the one she'd been in. Without knocking, she pushed open the door. "Grace?"

Grace was asleep in bed, underneath the covers. But it didn't look right to Penny. Her body looked as stiff as a board, and it didn't seem like she was breathing.

_Don't panic, she still has a strong heartbeat,_ Penny told herself. Still, she hurried over to the bed and sat down beside her sister. "Gracie?"

Grace was generally a light sleeper, and didn't need a lot of prompting to be woken up. But she didn't respond to Penny at all. Penny grabbed her arm underneath the comforter and shook it. "Grace! Gracie, wake up!"

Grace still didn't respond. Penny grabbed her small shoulders and shook her violently. "Gracie, wake up right now! It's Penny! Oh please sweetie, wake up!"

Grace finally began to stir, and Penny could've died from relief. Why did it take so much to wake up her younger sister? Did Hector drug her, or something?

_That bastard…_ Penny gritted her teeth. _If I had time I would make him pay for this! But all I can do now is get the hell out of here!_

"Penny…?"

Grace sounded so _tired_, but for the moment Penny didn't care. She pulled the child up into a sitting position and looked at her eyes. Her pupils weren't dilated, but she looked hazy. "Are you all right?"

"Wha…" Grace blinked, and shook her head. She looked around the room in confusion. "Where are we?"

Penny was hoping Grace could answer that, but she smiled slightly. "Wherever we are, we're leaving it."

"Did that man—Penny!" Grace suddenly grabbed her hand and looked her over. "Are you okay? You were shot!"

"Yes, I'm fine." She didn't like that she felt _too_ fine. She was seriously injured by the wreck, and yet now she was moving around like nothing happened. It wasn't like she hallucinated the whole thing, either. "How's your lip, Gracie?"

"I think it…oh, it's healed." Grace touched her bottom lip as she spoke, and was genuinely surprised. Penny looked closer and also saw that her lip was healed.

It was all making her more and more uneasy. "Gracie, we're leaving now."

"What about the man?" Grace asked as Penny pulled back the covers. "Did he bring us here?"

"Yes, but the sooner we get away from him the better we'll be." Penny was taken off-guard by the unexpected lurch in her heart. She paused briefly and pressed a hand over it. Why did it make her uneasy to talk about him so negatively?

"Your heart's strange again," Grace said. "Is it because of that man?" She rubbed a hand through her short hair uneasily. "You two have the same heartbeat."

Penny stiffened, but she tried to brush it off. "Come now Grace, every person has a different—"

"No, it's the same," Grace interrupted firmly. "I mistook his for yours in the woods."

The more Penny heard, the more she didn't like it. "Come on Grace, let's go."

"Are we going back to the crash site?" Grace slowly climbed out of bed. Penny didn't like the effort she had put forth for it.

"Of course not. Why do you ask?"

"Because our stuff is still there, isn't it?" Grace looked at her sagely. "My teddy bears are there, and so is your stuff."

"Gracie, it's too danger…" Penny trailed off as she looked around the room. In the far corner, she saw Grace's suitcase and things piled into a neat corner. "How did that get there?"

"My stuff is here?" Grace walked over to her things and checked it. She pulled out one of her bears and looked at Penny. "He brought us our stuff? That was nice of him."

"It's way too suspicious, Gracie." But Penny was becoming more uneasy. Hector saved them from their car and from the assassins, and even went back to get their things? Why would he go to such trouble?

"_It is because we are lifemates."_

_No, don't even think about it._ Penny shook her head again and stood up. "Forget about Hector, Grace. We have to get out of here."

"Hector?" Grace gave her a suspicious look. "That's his name? If you don't like him, how do you know his name?"

"Gracie, don't tease me. We're in a very serious situation." Penny opened the door and peaked out again. "It looks like the coast is clear, but please be quiet. We don't know if we'll run into him again."

Grace calmly repacked her stuffed animals and gathered her things. "He ripped the car door off," she said bluntly.

Penny's head snapped around and she gaped at her sister. " _W-What_?"

"To get you out. He ripped the car door off." Grace shrugged. "It was surprising, but he got you out so I wasn't too shocked."

Children always told tall stories, but Grace _never_ did. But the truth seemed so _crazy_. Hector killed their would-be assassins, brought them to this house somewhere, and could even rip heavy metallic objects in half? Just who the hell _was_ he? _What _was he?

_It's all the more reason for you to get the hell away from him_. "Stay with me, Gracie. I'm returning to my room to see if my things are in there."

"Did you thank him?" Grace asked.

"For what?"

"For saving us."

"…Sort of." Penny listened for the sound of Hector's heartbeat, but she reminded herself that his was too similar to hers. "Gracie, can you hear his heartbeat?"

"No."

"Are you su—"

"His heart sounds the same as yours, but all I hear is yours."

"…Me too." Penny strained a little harder, trying to pick up the heartbeat. His heartbeat gave hers an unnatural echo, but her heartbeat sounded singular now. She could even feel a faint rhythm. It was like he'd disappeared into thin air.

_But what if he was kidnapped?_ A knot of panic and guilt formed inside her. _What if the Morrison Center found him and took him? What if he's being tortured or is dead right now, and all because he tried to help us?_

"Penny, you're panicking again," Grace said.

Penny quickly shook her head. "I know, Grace." No…he couldn't be dead, or tortured. She would've heard it if it happened, and she certainly hadn't slept very heavy last night.

"Are you worried about him?" Grace asked. "Maybe we oughta stay put? He _did_ help us, after all."

"We don't know him, Gracie, and we don't know what his intentions are. He said he killed the bad men, but we both didn't see this happen. We can't just take his word for it."

"…Okay," Grace said reluctantly.

Penny rechecked her room, and found her things in the corner. Grace admired the size of the room, but Penny didn't give it much heed. She couldn't afford to.

The whole place was so cozy and inviting, Penny almost felt guilty about fleeing it. But she also noted that there definitely wasn't anybody else around but the two of them. She thought it was odd that Hector would leave them to their own devices, and she worried again that something bad had happened to him. It took her off-guard. Hector was a complete stranger. Why should she care if he ran afoul?

_But you __**do**__ care. You don't know this man, and you've only spoken a handful of words to him, but you care about his well-being._

Penny shut that voice off. She realized she was thinking about Hector too much, and it was making her uncomfortable. She didn't like that she could no longer hear his heartbeat, but she knew pondering over it would drive her crazy. They needed to get away. And now that it was apparent that the Morrison Center was closing in on them, she knew she had to get to Martin Quincy as soon as possible.

"Penny, look!" Grace was suddenly raiding the refrigerator. "Look at all this food!"

They didn't have time, but Penny was also mindful of the fact that they didn't really have any food with them other than snacks, but she didn't seem them amongst their things. She walked over to Grace and looked over her shoulder. The fridge was overstocked with food, _healthy_ food. All different types of fruits, vegetables, and yogurts were shoved onto every shelf. Grace grabbed a bag of baby carrots, while Penny searched through the food. The odd thing was, there wasn't any _meat_ in the fridge, not even eggs. The closest she could come to it was dairy products.

She sighed, and rubbed a hand through her hair. This would suit Grace just fine because the little girl was a vegetarian, but Penny _wasn't_ a vegetarian. But, there was nothing she could do about it, and meat would spoil quicker outside of a fridge than vegetables. She looked around once more to make sure nobody was around, and then proceeded to raid the refrigerator.

"Hey, Penny?" Grace asked, calmly munching on the carrots.

"What is it?"

"How are we going to get out of here?"

Penny looked at her. "What?"

Grace shrugged. "I mean, our car was crashed. Even if Hector brought us up here in his car, he's not here so that means he drove his car elsewhere. And where is here, anyways?"

She didn't like Grace pointing out all the obvious flaws in their escape plan. It made her uncomfortable and unsure of her ability to protect her sister. "Don't worry, sweetheart. I'll get us out of this."

"Okay." Grace didn't sound condescending or unconvinced. Her accepting nature was really starting to shine through in this moment, and she accepted that they were in an unknown situation and that Penny was going to work hard to get them out of it.

Once Penny was satisfied with their stolen food supply, they made the move to exit the house as quietly and inconspicuously as possible. She opened the front door, and saw a very clean driveway and front yard surrounded by a sea of trees. They had to still be in the Appalachian Mountains, but there was no way to tell if they were pointed towards Maine or Florida.

As Penny stepped over the threshold though, she gasped as a sudden tugging sensation grabbed her body. She looked down and looked behind her, but she didn't see anyone. And Grace's arms were full; it hadn't been _her_ who grabbed her. Shrugging it off, she tried to ignore the sensation as they stepped fully outside. But the tug only increased with each step she took.

_Is some sort of poltergeist trying to keep me in the house?_ she wondered. She tried to shake the feeling off as she successfully crossed over the porch and down the steps.

The area seemed very empty. The grass was neatly cut, there wasn't a trace of garbage on the ground, and everything was green. Penny looked up and cried out, covering her eyes.

"Are you okay?" Grace asked her, grabbing her hand.

"I…" Penny scrubbed at her eyes, which were spilling tears. She didn't understand. The sun wasn't very strong today; it was even being obscured by another storm cloud. Yet the dim rays had nearly blinded her!

She realized she was overheating, too. She tore off her jacket, but her skin felt too hot, as though it were about to sun burn. But she never sunburned, not even at times that she wore no sunscreen. What was going on?

_Hector_. She locked her jaw. _He must've done something to me the same that he did to Grace!_

"Are you sick, Penny?" Grace asked, and Penny looked at her. She didn't seem as affected by the minimal sunlight as she was, and she was relieved. But her condition didn't help their situation, especially since they needed to get out of there.

"No, I-I think this is an after-effect of some sort." Penny scrubbed at her eyes, but they were still leaking tears. "I need sunglasses."

"Maybe I should drive?" Grace offered coyly.

Penny forced a smile at her. "You're too young, Grace. Besides, we have no car to drive."

"What about that one?"

"What one?" Penny shielded her eyes with both hands and squinted in the direction Grace was pointing in. She saw the outline of a rusting station wagon partially hidden behind a tool shed. "Grace, that car might not work—"

"It's still worth a try, though," Grace said, looking at her. "Don't you think?"

"…All right." There unfortunately weren't many other options for them. It was either try and see if the station wagon worked, or walk down the mountain. The latter didn't appeal to Penny in the slightest.

The sisters dragged their belongings to the car, and Penny's apprehension grew as she got a closer look at the car. It couldn't have been made before 1979, but she didn't know that much about cars outside of the necessary maintenance needed to make a getaway. She popped the hood and was surprised and relieved to see a brand-new engine. It looked as though it'd never been used.

But that made it even more suspicious.

Grace looked at the engine as well. "That looks fine. We should be able to get away in this."

"Perhaps." But why put in a new engine but not fix up the rest of the car? Penny slammed the hood shut and opened the driver's side door. There weren't any keys in the ignition, and she dreaded going back into the house to search for them. "Grace, can you help me look for the car keys?"

Grace set down her things and calmly opened the passenger door. "Here it is."

"What?"

"Here." Grace pulled a single key from the passenger door ashtray. "This might be it."

Penny took the key and tried it in the ignition. It turned with ease and the engine rumbled. "All right! Time to get going!"

Grace smiled mildly. "Are we still going to Maine?"

"Yes. We have a lot of stuff that needs taking care of." _And I need to question Martin about all this…_

"How's your eyesight?" Grace asked suddenly. "Do you want my sunglasses?" she pulled out pink shades covered in sunflowers.

"Thank you Grace, but I have mine." Penny found hers in her own bag and quickly slid them on. They didn't really help very much in shielding the sunlight, but at least she could open her eyes. "Now let's go."

"Can I—"

"Backseat, Grace."

"…All right."

* * *

They drove all day and into the early evening. Despite the new engine, the station wagon was incredibly slow. All the rocks and potholes and whatnot that Penny ran over didn't help the car any. She could barely get it over 40.

But that ended up being beneficial, too. The Morrison Center wouldn't expect them to be driving such a slow car, especially right after a brush with death. Car kept cutting them off on the highway as they passed through the Appalachians, but the other motorists didn't give them much of a glance.

But…as each hour passed, Penny didn't feel at ease. This horrible sickening feeling was consuming her heart. She felt a strong weighing emptiness inside her, and it caused more tears than the pain of sunlight did. She kept losing her focus on the road, and sometimes had to pull over just to catch her breath.

Grace was wonderful to her. The little girl kept asking if Penny was all right, but not in a nagging way. Then again, it wasn't in her nature to nag. She also tried to get Penny to eat some of the food they stole, but the thought of food strangely made Penny even sicker to her stomach. At one point she tried to force herself to eat and popped a baby carrot into her mouth. She almost threw up right then and there.

They stopped very little, other than to use the restroom. Penny didn't ask anyone for directions, and she spoke to no-one. She didn't have the strength to; the sun itself seemed to zap the life right out of her. And this emptiness wouldn't leave her alone. She tried to focus on Grace's heartbeat, which was always a constant reminder that she had somebody in the world, but that wasn't nearly enough. She kept feeling like she'd made a horrible mistake, and she wanted a shoulder to lean on.

_Hector's_ shoulder.

_No, no! Stop thinking about him! Stop thinking about him!_

But she couldn't. It was so strange what a short exchange of dialogue could do to Penny. She didn't know Hector at all, and yet it terrified her that she couldn't feel him at all. Not even a slight hum of his heartbeat. It was as though he was no longer on Earth itself, but this thought made her even more scared.

Night was approaching, and the weather turned absolutely foul. Rain fell heavily all over again, and it impaired Penny's driving. But the sun was no longer shining and so she wasn't squinting through the whole ride. She looked into the backseat. Grace was fast asleep, upright against the seatbelt. She felt horrible that her sister was reduced to this, sleeping in a car because it wasn't safe for them to stop yet. Penny wasn't even sure it was safe to stop at all.

"Dammit…" she gritted her teeth and clenched the steering wheel. How she hated this damned life! It wasn't enough that her parents were murdered, but that she could never have a moment of peace! That Grace, an innocent eight-year-old child, couldn't even have a normal life! When would it finally be enough?

It was a question she asked herself too often, and it sent her deep into depression. She had to maintain her focus. They weren't safe at that moment, but she wouldn't stop fighting for peace for them!

"Going somewhere, Penny?"

She screamed so loudly that she didn't hear the screeching of the brakes. The car swerve and spun violently on the slippery asphalt, but a hand reached out and grabbed the steering wheel, forcing it steady as they veered off the highway and onto the grass.

Penny ripped the keys from the ignition. "Where did you come from?"

Hector was seated in what had been an empty passenger seat. He stared at her very calmly, and coldly. "Did you think I would let you leave so easily?"

"W-Where the hell have you been?" she shouted without realizing it. "Why couldn't I feel your heartbeat?" she could hear it now, though. Quite strongly as it beat in time with hers.

"I went to ground," Hector answered her. "And to do this I had to stop my body's functions. Of course, in my euphoria of finding you I forgot to keep you asleep. So you woke up on your own, and you fled."

"To ground? _Body functions_?" Penny shook her head. "What are you even talking about?"

Hector slid across the seat suddenly, stopping only when his face was inches from her own, and his taut body pressed slightly into hers. "I have claimed you, _sívamet_. I have offered protection to both Grace and yourself. Yet you choose to run away from me? Did I not save you from the butchers that have ruined your life?"

The intensity of his voice and eyes was overwhelming for Penny. She felt pinned inside the car, but oddly she didn't feel frightened by his proximity. "I don't know you." she wasn't shouting anymore, and her conviction was wavering with her words. "And I don't trust you."

"Don't trust me." He said it as a statement, not as a question. He reached up and stroked her cheek very gently. "You do not trust your lifemate, Penny?"

That simply caress sent a wavelength of feeling through Penny. She swallowed thickly and tried to look away from him, but he was too close to her. "Who are you? I-I don't understand this."

"I am a Carpathian male, _päläfertiil_, and you are my lifemate. I have been waiting for you for many, _many_ years, and it upsets me that you would rush off into danger, with a child in tow, when I freely offered you protection, and help." Abruptly, he closed the distance between them and kissed her mouth firmly.

Penny had wanted to ask about Carpathians. It sounded exotic and mysterious. But the question—and logic itself—fled from her mind with the touch of his kiss. Warning signals didn't even go off in her head. It only seemed natural to be kissed by him, and to accept and return the kiss. She tilted her head slightly, allowing for him to explore her mouth. His hand rose and wove tightly into her hair. In that moment they felt a very deep connection not just limited to their synching heartbeats.

"Are you two making out?"

Hector paused, and the interruption snapped Penny out of her stupor. She shoved at Hector hard, and he was surprised enough to be pushed back. "Grace!" Penny sat up and looked into the backseat. "Were you awake this whole time?"

Grace looked at the pair of them placidly and shrugged. "Your screaming woke me up." She didn't seem fazed that Hector had appeared out of nowhere.

"And you didn't say anything?" Penny demanded.

"You didn't check on me," Grace said. "But don't change the subject. Were you guys making out? It looked like you were."

"Grace—"

"We should go somewhere a little more comfortable," Hector interrupted. He reached for Penny once more and rubbed a hand on her arm. "There should be a hotel a few minutes from here."

"We can't stop," Penny said, trying to ignoring the tingles on her skin from his touch. "They'll find us if we stop!"

"_They_ will never lay their hands on you again. I will see to it personally."

His conviction was so strong that she couldn't help but gape at him.

"Then it's settled," Grace said. "I'd rather sleep in a bed anyways. My legs are asleep."

* * *

Penny was expecting Hector to guide her to a cheap motel. Instead, Hector directed her to drive into the parking lot of a plush hotel. Grace was nodding off in the backseat by the time they parked, and Hector lifted her from the backseat. It seemed like such a natural gesture that Penny felt oddly moved by it.

The hotel clerk greeted Hector by name, which confused Penny further, and he gave them a key to a suite on the top floor. Grace had awoken slightly when they entered the lobby, but she still looked tired when they started going up the elevator. Even though Hector had held onto her hand, she carefully pulled her hand free and leaned on Penny more. Hector didn't look offended by the gesture, but Penny couldn't deny that he looked at the pair of them different. His eyes, when upon Grace, seemed very paternal and perhaps loving. He didn't look at _her_ paternally though. Penny was starting to read blatant possession in his steady gaze. Her stomach squirmed, but not uncomfortably.

The room was amazing to behold, along with its own kitchenette and sitting area. Hector calmly directly Grace towards one of the closed doors, indicating it was a bedroom. She gave Penny a kiss goodnight before she paddled towards the room, closing the door calmly behind her.

Penny set her things down. "Thank you for this. If you'll give me a minute I'll go get ready for bed with Grace—"

"You're not sharing a room with Grace," Hector said calmly.

Penny quickly straightened and glared at him. "Look, I appreciate the trouble you've gone for us, but I'm not sharing a room with you. If you plan on trading chivalry for sexual favors, Gracie and I will get on out of here."

"I don't intend for you to leave, _sívamet_." Hector stepped closer to her and she flinched very slightly. "So long as you are with me, you will be safe. Alone, you are in danger."

Penny shook her head. "I want answers now. How do you know the Morrison Center? What are Carpathians? And _why_ are you even doing this?"

Hector smiled very slightly. "I will gladly answer each question." He suddenly moved forward and swept her into his arms. "Carpathians are an ancient race originating from the Carpathian Mountains. We have extended life spans, longer than an average human, and we do not wound easily. Our saliva has healing antigens that will close most wounds. Any wounds not easily healed, then we can become a force of light to heal the body.

"But…we are not supreme beings. For as invincible that we may seem to be, sunlight is our eternal foe. We are masters of the darkness, and the night is the time for us. Moreover, we do not eat the same food as humans. For it is not the nutrients in plants or animals that gives us life, but blood itself. We must take blood from a living being, but be careful to never, ever kill the person for whom we feed."

"Feed…blood…" a cold chill took hold of Penny. She tried to pull out of Hector's arms, but he was as unmoving as a concrete wall. "A-Are you saying…you're a _vampire_?"

Hector's hands clenched reflexively around her. "I am _not_ vampire," he said harshly. "Vampires are foul creatures of this earth who feed upon the innocents. They murder for the rush of death, and they corrupt everything around them. I am not a vampire."

"B-But…"

"But I understand, _päläfertiil_, that human ideology has confused you. We Carpathians are not as well known as our evil counterparts, and so naturally you would think I am vampire."

Penny struggled again, but he wasn't letting go. "W-What language are you speaking? You keep calling me all these names…"

"They are terms of endearment in my language, Penny. For I cannot help but want to be affectionate towards you." he buried his nose into her scalp. "You are my lifemate, after all."

"Lifemate…what does that even mean? Like a _soulmate_?"

"As I told you, we are not perfect beings. A Carpathian male is naturally dark, while Carpathian females represent goodness, purity, and light. It is the perfect balance, like yin and yang. Without this perfect balance, in time a Carpathian male loses his ability to feel emotions. Colors fade away, leaving the world in shades of gray. Imagine a world where you see life like a black and white movie, and you are void of emotions. It is a horrible existence, but one I have lived with for hundreds of years."

"Hundreds…" it was all too much for Penny to take in. She swallowed thickly. "B-But you're making a mistake. I'm a human, not Carpathian. I haven't even been to Canada."

"Yes, _sívamet_, you are human. But you are psychic, and because of you I see colors and feel emotions." He leaned back to look at her. "My race has been dying, Penny, for so very long. Only recently have we started to flourish, but we are still nearly extinct. Before our Prince received his lifemate, we only had five women to a host of hunters; Noelle, Lucia, Deidre, Celeste, and Eleanor. But two of them died, Penny, and one of them was _unclaimed_. The rest were all bounded as lifemates. Do you realize what that means? To live a life when you have _nothing_, and your only hope is on a handful of women who all already have lifemates? Women, who until recently have been unable to conceive? And when conception occurred, and children were born, they were all _male_? It has been a horrible, trying existence for me. But now…" he nuzzled her hair once more. "You are here with me, and everything is all right."

It was too much to take in at once. Was she supposed to believe he was hundreds of years old? Some sort of being that _wasn't_ vampire but drank blood?

_Why is all of this unbelievable to you?_ she asked herself. _You can hear the heartbeats of anything living. And there's an organization that's trying to kill you and has gotten away with it._

"Speaking of the Morrison Center," Hector said. "They are a criminal organization investigating vampires. Unfortunately, this has led them to believe that anything exhibiting what they deem to be unnatural abilities to either be vampires, or linked to them."

"W-W-Wait…" Penny managed to pull herself out of his arms this time. "Are you s-saying that these bastards murdered my parents because they thought they were _vampires_? They've _ruined my life_ because of this idiotic idea?"

"…Yes," Hector said reluctantly. "And you are not the only victim. Many, many others are facing the exact same hell as you."

Penny gaped in horror at him. "There's _more_?" she turned her body away slightly. "Oh, my God…"

A telephone started ringing from Grace's room. "Oh, she'll wake up!" before Hector could stop her, Penny rushed into the room to get the phone. Grace was still sound asleep in bed, but Penny still grabbed the phone quickly. "H-Hello?"

"_Twinkle, twinkle, little star." _It was that horrible, hideous voice. _"How I wonder what you are—"_

"Leave me alone, you son of a bitch!" Penny shrieked into the phone. _This_ succeeded in waking Grace up.

She nearly slammed the phone onto the cradle, but Hector gently took it from here. "Whoever you are, I will not tolerate your tormenting of this woman,"he said harshly, and with a compulsion to drive this person away.

A horrible, shrieking hissed erupted from the other line, startling Hector. _"HUUUUUNTEEEERRR!"_ the hunter came out as a garbling roar.

Hector tensed up. "I warn you, _foul creature_, that I will dispel justice upon you on behalf of my Prince!"

The line abruptly disconnected, and Hector replaced the phone on the cradle. Penny slowly sat down on the bed, tears in her eyes. Grace crawled over to hug her sister, though she looked calmer. "What is it?" Penny asked.

Hector looked at them slowly. _"_Sívamet_, this is quite bigger than I thought it was."_

Penny flinched, and clutched her head. "What are you doing? A-Are you talking in my head?"

"I don't hear anything," Grace said.

"_Penny, this is serious." _Hector looked at her levelly. _"This person contacting you isn't with the Morrison Center."_

Penny looked at him. "He isn't."

"_No."_ Hector slowly took her hand. _"He is a vampire." _


	7. Chapter Five

I'm back. With any luck my updates will be on time for now on, but I don't anticipate this story being as long as Dark Release.

Chapter Five

"_Let us believe neither half of the good people tell us of ourselves, nor half of the evil they say of others."_

_- J. Petit Senn_

* * *

Penny gaped at Hector for another long moment before she slowly shook her head. "I don't believe you."

"I wish it were otherwise, _sívamet_," Hector said aloud. "But it's now very clear—"

"That a _vampire_ is stalking us?"

"A vampire is stalking us?" Grace asked, looking between the two of them.

"It would explain how he could invade your dreams with the same nightmares over and over again," Hector said. "How he would know to torment you with a nursery rhyme—"

"Wait, so you have those dreams too, Penny?"

"Wait, what?" Penny grabbed Grace's shoulders. "_You've_ been dreaming that too, Gracie? Why didn't you tell me?"

Grace shrugged. "It's not important."

"Of _course _it's important! If you're having nightmares and having trouble sleeping at night, you need to tell me these things!"

"I dream about zombies too, though," Grace said. "And horses. Mostly the Karabakh breed."

"Those are very fast horses," Hector said pleasantly, smiling at Grace. "My kind is quite familiar with them. You're a very knowledgeable child, Grace."

Grace shrugged. "Thank you."

"Can we get back to the conversation at hand?" Penny demanded. "Just how do you expect me to believe that this is all the work of a vampire? Didn't you just tell me that the Morrison Center is _hunting_ vampires?"

"There's no guarantee that this vampire is aligned with the society," Hector told her. "He may as well be acting alone. But, if they _are_ aligned then both are surely using each other for personal means."

"_Hypocrites_!" Penny spat out, absolutely seething where she sat. "They're murdering innocent _people_ on this belief of vampires, but they'll work with a real-life one a-okay!"

"Chances are though," Hector said. "That this vampire is working alone. You've been able to hear his heartbeat since before your family was being hunted, so—"

"Wait, hold on a second!" Penny's head snapped up and she glared at Hector. "How did you know that? I never told you that!"

"It's in your memories, _päläfertiil_. It only means the vampire has been after you lo—"

"My _memories_?" Penny shot to her feet and grabbed Hector by his collar. "Let's get one thing straight _right now_! You are _not_ allowed to invade my privacy! My head is MY head, not yours!"

"I am your lifemate, Penny," Hector said soothingly, not at all offended or alarmed by her anger. "It is my privilege to see your thoughts, memories, and desires. My mind is an open book to you as well. There is no such thing as "privacy" between us."

"I don't even _know_ you! I don't know if I can trust you! So don't you DARE ever read my memories _again_!"

"You're a _psychic_ too?" Grace asked, also not affected by Penny's anger. "But you ripped a car door off, so are you a super-psychic, or does that make you a vampire or werewolf or alien?"

Hector stared blankly at this odd little girl for a very long moment. "I am Carpathian, _sisar_. I am _quite_ different from…all of the above."

"Look, look." Penny waved a hand impatiently. "Let's just stay focused! You're trying to say that a _vampire_ is stalking us in addition to the Morrison Center, and this vampire has been after us for much longer! But why is he even after us in the first place?"

"That...I cannot say." It _did_ seem odd to Hector that a vampire would go to so much trouble over a period of several years to stalk Penny and Grace. Penny was surely not his lifemate, and he'd touched Grace's mind as well. Grace didn't have any symptoms of being stuck in a half-life. So it was impossible for the vampire to be linked to either girl.

"_He must be deluding himself."_

"What?" Penny looked confused for a moment. "What did you say?"

"He didn't say anything," Grace said bluntly.

Hector looked at Penny. _"So you can hear me?"_

"How are you doing that again? Talking without even moving your mouth?" Penny rubbed her temples apprehensively and slowly sat back down on the bed. "This is all so _crazy_. I don't even know you, and yet you want to help us, no strings attached?"

"I think it's a good idea," Grace said.

Penny gaped at her, but she shrugged. "He didn't run us off the road, and he's not giving us nightmares. Besides, he's more powerful than a gun. Why refuse his help?"

"Gracie, he's a_ stranger_," Penny insisted. "And what have I told you about strangers?"

"If he's such a stranger," Grace said. "Then why were you making out with him?"

Penny flushed as Hector chuckled very slightly. "Grace, I wasn't—"

"_Stop."_

Penny stiffened and looked at Hector. All at once the humor was gone from his handsome face. At once he looked cold...and dangerous. "H-Hector?"

"He's here," he announced, looking quickly about the room. "Or rather, he's incredibly close by."

"The vampire?" Grace asked. "Does this mean you're going to fight him?"

Hector reached over and stroked her cheek gently. "Sleep, Grace."

Abruptly, Grace's eyes rolled into the back of her head and she fell back against the bed. Penny cried out and grabbed her sister into her arms. "Grace! _Grace_!"

Grace didn't respond whatsoever. "You..." Penny laid her back down and grabbed Hector again. "What have you done?"

"She's asleep, _sívamet_," he said calmly. "It will keep her safe. And it will keep _you_ safe as well."

"Who do you thi—"

Hector pulled Penny closer and kissed her hard on the mouth. Protests immediately fled Penny, and her knees grew weak. She didn't know something as simple as a kiss could render her senseless, but that was what Hector was doing.

Hector broke the kiss, but with a great deal of reluctant. "Trust in me," he said quietly. "I will protect you and keep you safe. But...you must stay here."

Before Penny could respond, sleep overtook her mind and made her body weak. She'd never felt something so powerful before. Sleep wasn't something that came to her naturally, and she slept lightly and with awareness of her surroundings.

Now...now this was almost like a blessed feeling of exhaustion that she couldn't fight. And didn't want to.

Hector cradled Penny gently in his arms as he laid her down in the bed beside her sister. Despite the dire nature of their situation, he carefully tucked both sisters in underneath the covers. He'd wanted the time to spend and enjoy his lifemate, but the matter at hand was most important.

The vampire had come for them.

Hector departed from the hotel suite and threw up the most powerful shields he could to prevent _any_ intruder from invading. And these poor sisters did indeed have far too many enemies.

_That will all change._ Hector concentrated on the form of mist and seeped through a window in the hotel hallway. _I will never allow these two to feel danger again._

The night was calling to him, but he was focused on this single task of finding the vampire. He was thankful that he had enough self-control to go out and feed before he sought after his runaway lifemate. It would definitely help him to fight.

Hector could feel the darkness permeating the area; the vampire was close. He retook his physical shape as he descended back towards the ground. Yes…the vampire _was_ here. "Foul creature!" he shouted into the darkness of the night, whilst simultaneously sending out a compulsion to keep any humans away. "I am here! Now reveal yourself!"

A horrible hiss reverberated the air. The streetlight above Hector suddenly shook, and he had to jump back as the long neck snapped in half and came crashing down towards him. The loss of the streetlight cast the area into darkness, but Hector didn't need such a meager light to see. "Is that the best you can do? Reveal yourself _now_, you coward!"

"I am no coward."

Hector picked up something else underlining in this awful voice. The sound of _crying_. His body was tense as a dark shape emerged from the darkened street and into his view. He saw the blaze of red, evil eyes before he saw the rest of the body.

"You tread where you do not belong, Hunter," the vampire hissed at him. At one time that pale, hollowed face had been handsome, and perhaps fearless. Now the skin was translucent, and stretched against his cheekbones. Inky hair spilled into his face and collected around his neck, making his flesh look even paler. His clothes were black, too; it helped him to meld well into the darkness of his world.

But, Hector wasn't looking at his clothes. What concerned him most was the vampire's companion. An extremely frightened woman was pressed into his side, a pale hand with long, bony fingers pressed over her mouth. Tears were spilling from bloodshot eyes, and she didn't look relieved to see Hector. She seemed even more terrified by these two strange men.

Hector looked at the vampire. "She is nothing to you, vampire. Who are you to victimize her in such a way?"

The vampire hummed with humor, and he licked at the woman's ear. "My name is Sevan, _Hunter_. And this woman is _mine_ for the taking."

"You will release her immediately," Hector said harshly. "And you answer for your treacherous actions, both to our Prince and to _me_ for the harm you've caused."

"Harm?" Sevan lifted his head away from the woman's and looked at Hector fully. "I am doing my own business. What harm have I caused _you_?"

"You've tormented my lifemate for _years_, and have caused her to live in fear! That is an unforgivable offense, and I will make you pay!"

"Lifemate?" Sevan asked incredulously. "_Lifemate_?" he suddenly threw back his head and laughed loudly. It sounded like nails on a chalkboard. "That slimy little _bitch_ is your supposed promised one? Am I suppose to believe THAT?"

"I don't care _what_ you believe! I do not have to explain myself to you!" Hector raised his hand towards them. "You will let her go right now!"

"But she is quite useful to me at the moment." Sevan hugged the woman tighter to him. "Her body's blood will give me strength and power. All I have to do is rip this little throat out and suck her dry, and you are no match for me."

The woman wailed against his hand, and tried to struggle, but Sevan was too strong for her. Hector didn't bother to hide his disgust. "What you seek is false power, foul creature. And it only shows your profound weakness. You may have fooled yourself into thinking that you are strong, but you are in fact _weak_ and a coward. If you were truly as strong as you say you are, then you would've waited for your lifemate. Instead, you've done nothing but terrorize people and terrorize my lifemate for whatever sick reasons you might have!" Hector stepped closer to them. "Now, let her go and meet your end!"

Sevan didn't look intimidated by Hector, or even angry by his words. He only laughed even harder and clutched the woman tighter to him. "Your words are useless! For what would I need to wait for my lifemate, when I already have her _by my side_?"

Hector growled in fury. "Let her go!" He finally lunged at them.

Sevan laughed, and shoved the woman hard into Hector's path. "You can't possibly defeat me!"

Hector quickly grabbed the woman, but then the ground rumbled. He scooped her up into his arms and jumped high into the air as black tentacles burst from the ground and reached towards him. He landed back on the ground several feet away and shoved the woman behind him as the tentacles lunged at him. He clenched his fists into tight balls, and concentrated. Fire sprung up between his fingers and he threw the fireballs at the tentacles. Thankfully they all caught fire instantly and disintegrated. He looked at the ground where the tentacles had sprung up, and rubbed a hand over his face in shame. _A trap. He laid a trap for me, and I didn't even notice_…

He made quick work of any dark influence over the area. Behind him the woman was hyperventilating, and completely hysterical. Once he was satisfied that the area was cleansed, he turned to her. "Do not be frightened. I will help you." he put full compulsion behind his words, gently demanding compliance.

The woman stopped crying instantly and calmed down. "What do you need to know?"

"How did you meet him?"

"I-I was out drinking with friends, and he—I just had this _feeling_. I left the bar and went outside, and he was there. And…" tears leapt into her eyes once more, despite his compulsion that she remains calm. "He told me he would kill me. He said a whole bunch of horrible things, and…I didn't want to go with him! But my feet wouldn't stop walking and I couldn't help myself!"

It appeared that Sevan snatched her not to kill her, but to use her as bait. And he was successful; in trying to save her, Hector hadn't been able to stop him from escaping.

He put a hand on her shoulder. "You're delirious from the night and wandered away from the bar in a drunken haze," he said, wiping her memory of this ordeal from her mind. "But you have sobered up, and you want to meet with your friends and go home. You will call a cab to take you home, and then you will call your friends to let them know you're all right."

Her eyes clouded over as the false memories set in. Hector directed her to a nearby gas station to make her phone calls, satisfied she wouldn't be involved in any more trouble that night. Then he quickly flew back to the hotel.

Something was odd with Sevan. He didn't seem to be working with the Morrison Center. Hector could imagine the society would _definitely _want a hand in trying to capture the McCormick sister. More so, Sevan didn't seem to care at all about lifemates in general. To joke about his hostage like that? Hector didn't understand the hatred the vampire felt for Penny, because it was now very apparent that Sevan hated her. Penny didn't even know him at all, and Hector saw no instances in her memories where they even met.

The most he could gather was that Penny constantly sensed his heartbeat, even when she was a teenager. But the two hadn't even met yet, so why did Sevan hate her so much?

_I'm sure we'll all find out._

He got back to the hotel in record time. He'd been afraid that Sevan would be able to find the sisters while he was taking care of the woman. A quick check of the shields though showed that nothing had been disturbed.

Penny and Grace were as he'd left them, deeply asleep in bed. Hector leaned over Penny, tucking the covers around her. It still seemed so surreal to him that he'd truly found her, and that she was his. He was not so prideful though to think that he could magically change her ways. She didn't trust anyone, with good reason, and she certainly didn't trust him despite the help he'd provided.

"_I will protect you, _päläfertiil_." _He leaned down and brushed a kiss over her forehead. _"I swear on my life that nothing will ever hurt you ever again."_

Penny didn't respond to him, but he could sense the peace in her mind. Grace was still curled by her side, and her mind was equally calm. It was almost compulsory now, that he see Fatima in this young face. Grace was so unlike his own little sister, but he'd felt an immediate connection to her. And _she _wasn't causing him any trouble, which was also surprising.

Hector maintained a powerful sleep compulsion over the both of them though as he left them alone. He couldn't risk Penny running off like this again. He closed the bedroom door behind him, and sighed. To have the Morrison Center after them, in addition to a rogue vampire, would make his task very difficult. _"Tariq, are you still awake?"_ he reached out to his fellow Carpathian, even though there was quite a distance between them.

"_I am," _was the stoic reply. _"And I congratulate you on finding your lifemate, Hector. This has given the rest of us great hope in these tapes."_

"_It is more than the Morrison Center with these two. A vampire named Sevan has deliberately targeted Penny for some unknown reason. I can find nothing in her memories that would suggest that they had even met, but Sevan seems to hate her quite strongly."_

"_The Morrison Center is tightly investigating their failed assassination attempt on the sisters in the Appalachians. They haven't found the bodies of the would-be killers yet, but our tactics are not new to them. They're going to be following all three of you very closely."_

"_If they think they'll traumatize these girls any further, they're sorely mistaken."_ Hector didn't hide the rage from his voice as he slowly sat down on the couch. _"They've completely destroyed my lifemate's life, and her sister has had __**nothing**__ resembling a normal life!"_

"_So the baby __**did**__ live."_ Hector didn't miss the note of interest in Tariq's voice. _"Is she also psychic?"_

"_Grace shares Penny's abilities, but she's also eight years old," _Hector warned.

"_It is not my intention of approaching her,"_ Tariq answered defensively. _"She is far too young to induce colors. Besides, I have seen both McCormick sisters through you, Hector, and I feel nothing for either. If Grace were in fact my lifemate, I believe I would feel a connection as Gregori did."_

Gregori _had_ felt an instant connection to his lifemate Savannah, and while she was still in Raven's womb. Tariq had a valid point. _"I trust you, my friend. If it were not for your system, I wouldn't have found Penny."_

"_You would have found her in due time—"_

"_No. She is in far too much danger. If I hadn't found the tape sooner, she would surely be dead now."_

"_And it is your duty to protect her…and her sister. Have you erased Grace's memories yet?"_

Hector said nothing, but the silence was answer enough. _"You would allow such a young mind to continually live with this darkness?"_

"_She has awareness when I try to control her, Tariq. And it appears she doesn't like being controlled."_

"_Perhaps the knowledge of what's going on will help to keep her safe," _Tariq conceded._ "But you __**will**__ erase her memories once you get rid of this vampire and the society members after her, won't you?"_

It would be the ideal thing to do, since Grace knew nothing of childhood normalcy. _"I will see how things go."_

Tariq sighed. _"You are still on the East Coast, are you not? I will contact some of our allies there to help you."_

"_We are going up into Maine. Penny believes that a human male by the name of Martin Quincy has been in contact with the Morrison Center. I can attest to the fact that Penny was still in hiding before they met, and then suddenly Sevan made contact with her and she was involved in that shootout."_

"_But if the vampire and the Morrison Center aren't working together, then it might have been all just a coincidence."_

That might've been true…if Martin hadn't known Penny's real name.

"_It was a pleasure to meet you, Penny."_

How had he known her name? She hadn't even introduced herself as Shelby. He wouldn't have surely pulled the name 'Penny' from out of nowhere!

"_This does sound suspicious,"_ Tariq said thoughtfully. _"However, it isn't like the Morrison Center to make such a simple mistake like that. Has your woman ever met this man in the past?"_

"_I looked through her memories, and I never saw him."_

"_But in any case, he undoubtedly knows __**something**__, so it is wiser to go up and meet with him. You in turn will be able to read his mind and find out what he knows…whether or not he is involved with the Morrison Center."_

Yes, it would be wisest to make contact with Martin Quincy now. If he knew nothing, and his calling Penny by name was a coincidence, then Hector only needed to wipe his memory of her. But if he _was_ involved with the Morrison Center…he needed to be taken care of.

"_In the meantime, watch over your woman,"_ Tariq said warily. _"The American women have given the Hunters a __**great**__ deal of trouble. Since Penny McCormick seems prone to fleeing, you'll need to keep a tight watch on her."_

"_I would watch over her regardless. But, thank you for your help." _Hector pulled away from Tariq, his mind once more on Penny. He didn't doubt she would give him trouble, but the prospect was also somewhat exciting to him. After living so long, and losing everything he ever cared about, these awakened feelings and these two very strange girls were very refreshing.

"_But with any luck, Penny will be more compliant with me."_

* * *

"_Wake up, _päläfertiil_."_

A dream fog immediately lifted from Penny's mind, and in an instant she was wide awake. She opened her eyes in deep confusion, and slowly sat up. It was dark inside the bedroom, and she didn't remember going to sleep. Was it night out already? Or did she just take a short nap?

"_A whole day has passed, _sívamet_,"_ Hector told her. He wasn't present in the room, though. _"You are as fully rested as you can be. Now, go get something to eat with your _sisar_."_

Penny looked at the room as the confusion grew. "A whole…day? I lost a _whole day_?" she flung the covers back and jumped out of bed. "They'll get us!"

"_Nobody will get you," _Hector soothed her. _"You are perfectly safe, Penny."_

"There's no such thing as 'perfectly safe'!" it felt so _weird _to be talking aloud when she subconsciously knew Hector wasn't in the room with her. "We're hunted! We have to keep moving!"

"_We aren't going anywhere, at least not for the moment."_

"You're not included in this equation! And where the hell _are _you?"

"_There is a serious matter I must tend to. I will tell you in fully shortly, but go get something to eat—"_

"GRACE!" Penny shrieked, noticing for the first time that her little sister wasn't in the room with her. "Grace, where are you?"

"Out here, Penny!" Grace called through the door.

Penny flung open the door. Grace was sitting at the suite's dining room table, nonchalantly eating a pile of strawberry-covered pancakes. Penny gaped at her. The little girl was simply sitting there, eating breakfast as if it were a normal situation.

_She wouldn't be Grace otherwise, _she thought wryly. "Gracie, are you all right?"

"Of course I am," Grace said neutrally. "Why wouldn't I be? Hector ordered these pancakes for me. Wasn't that nice of him?"

"Uh…" Penny slowly took a seat at the table. "Gracie, Hector may be helping us for some reason, but I don't want you to be alone with him."

Grace looked at her calmly. "Why? He's your boyfriend isn't he?"

"No, he's not," Penny said firmly.

Grace thought it for a moment. "No, I guess not."

Penny relaxed slightly. "Grace—"

"But he's your lifemate."

Penny felt a strong headache come on. "Grace, do you even know what that means?"

"Do you?" Grace asked bluntly.

Penny sighed heavily. "It doesn't matter about it."

"But it matters if he's helping us, and is nice to us. Here." Grace held out her fork. "Have a bite. It's really good."

Penny shook her head, feeling an uncomfortable churning in her stomach. "No thank you, sweetie, I'm not hungry."

"But you haven't really eaten anything in days, Penny. Don't you want to eat?"

"I just…I don't know, Gracie." She really _hadn't_ been hungry the past couple of days. Was it related to her stress?

"_That…is probably my fault,"_ Hector said reluctantly. _"I made a blood exchange with you in order to heal you. You're probably still feeling the effects of my blood, and Carpathians live on blood and not human food—"_

"You gave me BLOOD?" Penny shrieked, jumping to her feet. "I drank your _blood_?" But she'd thought that'd been a dream! A hot, _erotic_ dream where he held her against his body. A body that was finely built of hard ridges and firm muscle…no, no! These thoughts were inappropriate!

Grace stared at her blankly. "Are you all right, Penny?"

Penny flushed with the realization she was screaming at a man who was not present, in the presence of her sister. "I-I—"

"You've been talking to yourself a lot," Grace observed cautiously. "Maybe you_ aren't_ getting enough sleep."

"Maybe I'm still asleep," Penny groaned, pressing a hand to her face as she sank back down into the chair. "Maybe _this_ is the nightmare?"

Grace shook her head. "You're awake. You're just embarrassed about your feelings for Hector that it's giving you stress."

"Gracie, there are _so_ many things that give me stress that this one guy could hardly make any of it worse."

"But we're safe," Grace pointed out. "Those guys in the car shooting at us didn't get us. And we haven't gotten creepy phone calls or had nightmares since Hector stepped in. So what else can be stressing you?"

"_She has a good point,"_ Hector said.

"Oh, just SHUT UP! Gracie, I'm not talking to you," she quickly interjected.

Grace didn't look offended by the gaffe. "Are you talking to _him_, then?"

"Gracie—"

Penny felt a brush at her back, and stiffened as arms slid around her in an intimate hug. "Hello, _sívamet_."

"Let me go!" Penny struggled in his arms, but Hector wasn't budging. "Where the hell were you? And _why_ did we sleep in until NIGHT?"

"So you wouldn't escape on me, which is what you would've done." Hector brushed his lips over her curly hair. "I can watch over you properly, especially when we take our leave."

"You—stop it! How _dare_ you handle me like this in front of a _child_?"

But Grace stared at the scene in front of her blankly. "Do you want pancakes, Hector?"

"No, _Sisar_, I have already fed." He let Penny go then, but with obvious reluctance.

Penny brushed her arms off. "Fed…off some poor idiot, right?"

"Does this mean you drink blood like a vampire?" Grace asked. "But you aren't giving us nightmares or hurting us. Does that mean you're a "good" vampire?"

Hector nearly laughed at her questions. "I'm afraid there's no such thing as a "good" vampire, Grace. Well, there was just _one_, but he was a **great** exception."

"So why were you gone?" Penny asked. She poured herself a glass of water and gingerly drank it. Even the taste of tap water turned her stomach.

Hector looked at Grace warily. Tariq's words rang true in his mind. "I will speak to you about it separately."

Penny tensed. "It's bad, isn't it?"

"Why can't you tell me?" Grace asked. "I can keep a secret."

Hector walked over and tucked some of her short curls behind her ear. "I know, _Sisar_, but this news is very disturbing. Far too disturbing for you."

Grace's eyes narrowed suddenly, and she frowned deeply. "I'm a kid, but I'm not an idiot. A car full of bad guys shot at us. What else can shock me?"

Hector stared at her. He wasn't use to this behavior in a child. He was use to seeing children in temper tantrums, and screaming. Not stoic annoyance, like Grace had. Not even Carpathian children really acted like this.

"Grace." Penny walked around the table and knelt down, sliding an arm around her shoulders. "You're a big girl, and you're so strong. But please heed what Hector has to say."

Grace looked at her. "I—"

"He told you about the vampire, didn't he? That's proof enough that he trusts you, Gracie, and sees you as more than just a kid. This news must be bad, _very_ bad. I don't want to hear it, but I know I must. Please, just wait here and finish your breakfast—dinner, okay?"

Grace was silent for a long time. Finally, she nodded. "Okay. Can I order more pancakes, then? This time with blueberries?"

"Okay, sure," Penny laughed, unsure of how Grace could have more of an appetite for pancakes with the stack already in front of her. She kissed her on the head. "We'll be just a minute."

Hector ordered the blueberry pancakes and left a hefty tip with Grace as they went back into the bedroom. Penny sat on the bed so that her back was against the headboard. "Okay…what is it?" her stomach was in knots. She _truly_ didn't want to hear this potentially awful news. But she knew Hector was telling her for a reason.

Hector sat down on the bed, at Penny's feet. He picked up one of them into his hands and slowly massaged the arch. The gesture took Penny off-guard and she sat up straighter. "D-Don't distract me!"

"I'm not," Hector said slowly. "I'm easing the tension from you."

It was working; nobody had ever massaged her feet before, but she could feel magic in his fingers. She relaxed very slightly. "All right, what's the news?"

Hector hesitated for a moment. "A young child was murdered last night."

"WHAT?" Penny sat up fully, shock and horror engulfing her. "W-Wha—how—oh, my God!"

"A vampire attack," Hector said, his tone quiet. "The child was a six-year-old boy. According to detectives and family, his window was open last night to let in cool air, and the next morning he was gone. Some neighbors had said they'd heard singing in the night, and they'd mistaken it for some crazy woman. Police found the boy's body on a park bench, underneath a blanket."

"A blanket…" tears stung Penny's eyes and she pressed her fingers over her mouth. "The vampire…h-he killed a child and then threw a blanket over him? Like he was putting him to _bed_?"

"…It would appear so. Sevan was the vampire I had contact with last night, so I know it was him. He had a woman with him, but I stopped him from doing anything to her. He obviously turned around for a child once I lost track of him." Hector's tone was cold and bitter, and his insides were numb. An innocent little boy was senselessly killed…and on _his_ watch, too. What was Sevan thinking, to kill a child? Didn't he realize the ramifications he would face from _many_ different species over this?

_But he doesn't care. All he wants to do is torment these girls, and killing this child is easy for him._

"…Hector."

"What is it?"

Penny looked at him fully. Her eyes were full of tears, but she wasn't crying. "This Sevan…is this the same one tormenting us?"

"…Yes."

"And he killed this little boy because of me?"

"He killed the child because as a vampire he thrives on death. If it were not this boy, then someone else would've been killed."

Hector's assurance didn't make Penny feel any better. "If we stay here any longer, will he just kill more children?"

"He will not strike so soon after this kill, else wise alerting more hunters to his presence. But…he has made it clear that his focus, for some reason, is on you."

"But why _me_?" she demanded. "I could hear his heartbeat since I was a teenager! He called me a _murderer_! He obviously knows I killed those people with the Morrison Center, but you're saying they're not linked! So why is he even after me?"

"I do not know. Considering I saw nothing of him in your memories—"

"I told you not to read my thoughts!" Penny pulled her foot out of his hands.

"The most I can guess is that _perhaps_ he fixated upon you as a potential lifemate when he turned, but once he realized you _weren't_ his lifemate his hope turned into bitterness."

Penny was silent for a long moment. "We need to go now. Otherwise he'll just kill more children, here."

Hector nodded. "It's not your fault he kills, but he will kill around you to get your attention and torment you."

"Right." Penny jumped from the bed and rushed over to her suitcases. "The more I move and the less I settle, the less chance he has to kill people." She pulled out a change of clothes but looked over her shoulder. "Can you leave the room for a minute?"

Hector arched an eyebrow slightly. "You are only taking your clothes off, _sívamet_. It's no big deal."

"No big…" Penny felt a strong urge to throw something at him. "I'm not getting changed in front of _you_!"

"Why not? I am your lifemate, and you have nothing to be embarrassed about. Look at your feelings. Are you embarrassed?"

No, she wasn't. It actually embarrassed her though that she _wasn't_ embarrassed about showing her body to him. She quickly brushed it off, though. "Just wait outside. What will Grace think if we leave the room together and I'm a new set of clothes?"

"She will think that you changed," Hector said amusingly. "Or what do _you_ think she'll think?"

"Just _leave_!"

"All right." Hector slowly rose from the bed. He could fade from the room and simply reappear in the main area of the suite, but he wanted some normalcy with the sisters. "We shall leave then once you both are ready."

"Wh—_we_?" Penny looked at him incredulously. "You don't think _you're_ invited with us, do you?"

"Of course I am. Did you think I'd let you run off alone again?"

Penny didn't bother to argue. Perhaps letting Hector ride in the car with them was better than him randomly teleporting there later. She turned her back to him and started lifting up her shirt, not noticing he wasn't completely out the door.

Hector found the curve in her slender bare back to be very appealing. He bit down on his lower lip as a profound sense of need overtook. He closed the door behind him, not quite trusting himself. Maybe she was right; if he saw more of her body, he would be far more tempted to claim her than to flee.

_Later, _he told himself. _Leave it for later…_

He turned from the door and nearly walked headlong into Grace. Surprisingly, the little girl was suited up to go. "So are we leaving?"

"Yes, _Sisar_," he answered warily. "Did you finish your pancakes?"

"I'm full," she said. "But there'll be other times." She paused before she continued. "Is Penny okay? She felt very upset."

"She'll be okay, Grace." he put his hand on her shoulder. "And so will you. You are both under my protection and I'm not going to let anything happen to you."

Grace shrugged. "I thought so. You would've left us to die out there if you didn't care. Penny doesn't trust you, though."

"I know this, _Sisar_." He tried not to smile. Grace was warily trusting of him, and it pleased him somewhat that he didn't have to create false memories of friendship with the child. One of the biggest reasons he hesitated to erase her memories was because of her mature nature. She took any crisis with a minor grain of salt, and didn't seem traumatized but her hellish life. Still, the thought of giving her memories of peace, even false ones, was tempting.

"Why do you call me that?" Grace asked bluntly.

"Call you what?" he asked her.

"That word. It sounds like 'sister', but I'm not your sister. Do you see me as a sister because you're Penny's boyfriend?"

The bedroom door opened sharply. "Gracie, I've told you many times that he's _not_ my boyfriend!" Penny glared at him as she brought out the suitcases. "Now, let's get ready!"

"So he's coming with us?" Grace asked.

"…Yes," Penny said reluctantly.

"If he's not your boyfriend, why is he coming with us? You never let anyone else travel with us."

"Gracie—"

"I call you that because, yes, I _do _see you as a sister," Hector interjected gently. "Does it bother you?"

Grace thought about it for a moment and shrugged. "No."

"Let's just go," Penny said. "Before Sevan hurts anyone else."

"Who's Sevan?" Grace asked.

"It's nothing for you to worry about," Hector. "But we _do_ need to move quickly and get to Maine. There's someone up there we have to meet."


	8. Chapter Six

My internet crapped out over the weekend, so the update came today instead.

Chapter Six

"_Marvelous Truth, confront us at every turn, in every guise."_

_- Denise Levertov_

* * *

Traveling proved to be more difficult for Penny than she thought. Although it reassured her that Hector's presence meant for safer travel, it also meant for _slower_ travel as well.

Hector insisted on doing the driving. She'd been surprised that he actually knew how to drive, but it felt awkward for her to be sitting idly in the passenger seat. She was so use to running away and initiating fleeing. She felt a slight loss of power in allowing him to drive as well. He was the one guiding them on their way, and she had no choice but to comply.

"_You are my lifemate and I will protect you at all costs."_

Penny glanced at him briefly. "You never explained what lifemates were, anyways."

"Is it like soul mates?" Grace asked unhelpfully from the backseat. "Do you guys share a soul?"

"Gracie—" Penny began.

But Hector only laughed at Grace's question. "You are quite keen, _Sisar_. Lifemates _are_ exactly what you said."

"Is that why you two have the same heartbeat?"

"We—" Penny began.

"That's exactly correct," Hector said, smiling at the little girl over his shoulder. _"I'm really starting to like her, _päläfertiil_. She's really quite unlike any other child in her age group."_

Penny groaned, and rubbed at her forehead. _"You have no idea."_

Hector shifted slightly, and Penny glanced at him. "What's wrong?"

"_You just spoke to me through your mind, Penny. You haven't done so until now."_

Penny hadn't even noticed she thought her words to him. Heat rose to her cheeks and she looked away once more. "Don't get us to it, because I'm not doing it again."

"_But it's much more convenient than speaking out loud. Besides, I can be able to tell you a wonderful variety of things, such as how appealing I find your body—"_

"Shut up!" Penny clamped her hands over her ears. "La, la, la, I can't hear you!"

"Hector?" Grace asked, unmindful of Penny's seemingly bizarre behavior.

"What is it, _Sisar_?" he asked her.

"Since Penny and you have the same heartbeat, does that mean that _my_ lifemate will have my heartbeat?"

Penny's insides froze up at these words and she quickly turned in her seat. "Gracie, you're too young to be speaking about such things."

"But I was wondering," Grace said bluntly. "Because we both can hear heartbeats, and Hector's sounds almost the same as yours. I mistook _his_ for yours at first. So does that mean the same thing will happen with me and my lifemate?"

"My lifemate and I," Penny corrected dryly. She took hold of Grace's hand. "Sweetheart, you're still a child. There's no guarantee that you even have a lifemate."

"_I wouldn't be so sure about that," _Hector said grimly.

"Just be quiet!" Penny snapped at him. "She's a little girl! She doesn't need some weirdo latching onto her!"

"_She is far too young to trigger colors in a Carpathian male, so you have nothing to worry about. But what do you mean by a "weirdo latching onto her"?"_

"What do you_ think _I mean?"

"This is weird," Grace said, looking between the two of them. "It feels like I'm watching a one-sided fight."

"I'm speaking to your sister mentally," Hector supplied. "But she prefers to speak out loud."

"Psychic talk?" Grace asked. "But why like that? Are you telling her dirty things?"

Penny burst out laughing. It wasn't a sarcastic laugh either, but one with a genuine hint of good humor and even happiness. Hector wasn't offended by Grace's awkward question; he was happy to see such glee come from his lifemate, who was normally so very tense.

Grace looked at Penny thoughtfully. "So, I was right?"

Hector was about to respond, but then he noticed the horizon line in the distance. The sky was becoming lighter, turning pink. He checked the clock on the dashboard and curse to himself. It was nearly daylight, but he'd been too distracted by his company to really keep an eye out for the sun!

"We have to stop," he announced abruptly. He took an exit off the highway.

"Stop? But why?" Penny asked.

"The sun's about to come out and I need to hide from it. You both need rest, too."

"So sunlight hurts you?" Grace asked. "Like a vampire?"

"I am not a vampire, _Sisar_." He caught sight of a small hotel and sighed shortly in relief. "But I _am _abhorred to the sun."

"It's a shame," Penny said quietly. "The world is so beautiful during the daylight. It must be hard to only be able to see the world at night."

"No, not really," Hector said, touched by the sympathy in her voice. "I don't know daylight, so I can't miss being in it."

"Hmm." Penny folded her arms over her chest. "There's a security to seeing the sun out. Most everything is visible, and a lot of predators are asleep. The world just seems to flourish."

"_Well, I DO happen to be a hunter, _sívamet_. And unlike vampires I __**can**__ go out into the daylight for a short period of time. But it would not be wise for me to do it often."_

"So we're going to bed now?" Grace asked. "But it's not even seven in the morning!"

"Sweetie, it was your choice to stay up all night with us." Penny found that she _was_ very tired. She didn't like this sudden transition of being up all night and sleeping all day, but that was how Hector's system worked. And she couldn't deny that they hadn't been attacked since he'd rescued them. Nobody had even cut them off in traffic.

Hector got them a room with two beds. Grace quickly claimed one closest to the door and was surprisingly asleep in minutes. Penny sat down on the other bed and watched Hector calmly seal the room. He made sure no potential sunlight could seep in through the curtains or under the door. He even covered the peephole and keyhole of the door.

"Are you bedding down with us?" Penny asked warily. She looked at Grace in the other bed. "Here, I'll let you sleep—"

"Not so fast." Hector was at her side in an instant. With a touch from his hand to her shoulder she was stretching out on the free bed, and slid down to lay beside her. "You will lie with me, _päläfertiil_."

Penny's hear accelerated, and she knew she was blushing. "I'm _not _sleeping with you, Hector."

"Why would you think I would take you with your sister sleeping beside us?"

"Oh." Penny glanced at Grace once more. "Then…thank you, then."

"You're welcome." Hector curled at her side, holding her in his arms. It was strange how content he was to simply lie there and hold her. His grip was tight and possessive, but his touch was so tender. Unexpectedly, Penny's heart began to race. Never had she been really interested in men—or people in general—and yet this virtual stranger invoked so many different feelings inside of her, either with a touch or with a look. Her body seem to mold into his so naturally, too, and her nerves calmed and relaxed. She felt _content_.

"Who are you?" she mumbled into his chest. "How old are you? Do you have a family? Tell me." Her fingers curled into his shirt. "I feel strange being safe with you without knowing you."

"My life is open to you, as it is meant to be," Hector said. He pulled her tighter into his arms. "I was born in the fourteenth century, Penny, in the Carpathian Mountains."

"F-Fourteenth…"

"I was lucky, you see. Remember how I told you how close to extinction we Carpathians are? It wasn't always that way. My race was a thriving population when I was born. In the years that followed, though, we began to have birth defects in our females. But, there was still many of us. Unfortunately, many terrible things happened."

"Like what?"

"Our Prince, of the Dubrinsky house, is what anchors our people. We cannot survive without him. The former Prince, Vlad, had four children to him; Draven, Mikhail, Jacques, and Noelle. But Draven chose to follow the dark path and gave up his soul. Sadly, Vlad loved his son greatly and couldn't bring himself to make a death warrant against him, as what should happen to any traitor."

"But why did Draven turn?" Penny asked.

"Who can really say? Maybe he was trapped by the allure of dark power. Maybe his lifemate died somewhere in the world. What is known is that he turned, and Vlad ignored it. That is, until he mutilated an unclaimed female of a prominent family."

"Oh, my God!" Penny looked at him. "Why would he do that?"

"As with any vampire, he fixated upon her as a potential lifemate. But she wasn't his lifemate and she couldn't save him. More so, she didn't _want _to save him. This incident created uproar within our community, and many were ready to mutiny against the Prince. However, a series of more tragic events plagued our people, instigated by an evil sorcerer named Xavier, and most of my people were massacred." He paused briefly before he continued. "Including my whole family."

Penny could see the memories that he'd lived. It was so barbaric to her. His whole family was dead? It made Penny sick to her stomach to think if Grace had died as a baby, or somewhere down the road. Even though she was protecting and shielding her little sister, having the child with her was therapeutic. It gave her a reason for living, and to keep fighting.

What if she had to do all of that _alone_? Just as Hector did?

"I am grateful that you didn't have to do this alone, _päläfertiil_, even as I am pained that you two have suffered so much. I don't intend for this madness to continue."

"But what can you do?" Penny asked, but not unkindly. "The Morrison Center has a worldwide reach. They've found me _everywhere_ I've hidden, even as by some miracle I've been able to stay one step ahead of them. If what you're saying is true, they've been killing people for a long time, and don't show signs of stopping. How can you protect me?"

"It is true," Hector said. "That they've been doing these evil deeds for many, many years. They have even been brazen enough to attack our own Prince. But, for all their evil and intimidation the Morrison Center is run by _humans_. And we are stronger than humans. More so, our Prince will guide us on the right path."

"How do you know he's not a pushover like the other one?"

Hector resisted the natural urge to admonish her for insulting Mikhail. "Because _he_ has too much at stake as well. An adult daughter with identical twins and he himself with an infant son. I can assure you, Penny, that Mikhail _can _be trusted to make the difficult but _correct_ decisions."

"How?" Penny knew she was offending him by questioning Mikhail's validity, but she couldn't help it. She didn't trust anyone, even as her entire being was telling her that Hector was safe.

"Because where his father failed, Mikhail's first order as Prince was pronounce a death sentence upon Draven."

"…Oh." It was still hard, but Penny began to understand. Mikhail was one of Vlad's sons, and yet he did what his father could not do, and that was to stop his brother. If Mikhail could recognize evil when he saw it, even in his own kin, he didn't hesitate to stop him.

A sour feeling engulfed Penny all of a sudden. Who was _she_ to judge anyone? Had she not chosen her baby sister over her mother's life? Didn't she herself cut Grace out of her mother's body while Bianca was still alive?

Didn't she…kill her own mother?

"Penny." Hector's tone became sharp and he forced her to look at him. "You are _not_ a butcher, Penny. Saving Grace, even in the way that you did, was your mother's final wish. Grace is alive because of you."

"But my mom—"

"This little girl beside us is alive because _you_ saved her. And look at her, _sívamet_. For a child surviving that traumatizing experience before they were born—and to be healthy and _normal_—shows your strength and goodness. You are not evil, Penny, and you are not wrong to question me or Mikhail. You don't know any better, and it would be wrong of me to force compliance upon you."

Penny looked at Grace. The little girl was curled up like a cat underneath the covers. She looked so comfortable and _peaceful_…one would've never guess the hell she'd suffered her whole life. Tears filled her eyes. "Oh, Hector…how can they do this to us? The Morrison Center and Sevan?" she turned and buried her face into his chest. "Why can't they just leave us alone?"

"They _will _leave you alone, Penny." He pulled her tighter against him. "I'll do everything in my power to make sure this happens."

* * *

They awoke that evening to hear another report of a child death. It was disheartening, but it was another reminder that Sevan was right on their tails. It puzzled Hector as to why the vampire would go out and kill another child, especially so soon after the little boy he'd killed, instead of trying to find Penny.

It was strange, and Hector didn't like it. Vampires were evil, but they didn't risk murdering a child unless they were full of themselves or strong enough to handle multiple foes. And yet _this_ vampire was wantonly killing children, one right after the other? This seemed more like something a ghoul would do and not a vampire.

They moved out as soon as they could. The sun hadn't completely set, but it was safe enough to travel. Penny was sullen over the news of the child, and Grace was trying to raise her spirits. But Hector knew that there was more to Penny's mood than the poor child.

A couple of hours after they'd initially set out, they crossed state borders into Maine.

Penny's hands curled into fists in her lap. In all these years, she hadn't set foot back into Maine. Grace had never seen their home state, or her hometown. She doubted anyone remembered her, for all the moving that they'd done. Being there made her so incredibly tense, as if goons from the Morrison Center were going to jump out from behind bushes and open fire on her car.

"We're going towards Portland, correct?" Hector asked.

Penny looked at him. "Why Portland?"

"That's where Martin Quincy lives, isn't it?"

"How do you know about him? Did you read my memories again?"

"_Sívamet_, you have good reason to believe that he's in league with the Morrison Center. It's best to confront him right away and find out what he knows."

Penny didn't bother yelling at him over looking through her head again. She scoffed and folding her arms over her chest, staring out the window.

It took them a couple more hours to reach Portland. By then it was just past ten at night, and Grace was asleep in the backseat. "I think we should find a hotel," Hector offered. "Then we—"

"Let's stop by his office first," Penny said. "I want to get a feel for the place before I confront him."

"The office is no doubt closed, and nobody would be—"

"We can get in and find access to his personal information. Then we can make a "house visit" and find out what he knows."

"…This is all also true. But what would you like done with Grace?"

Penny looked at her in the backseat. "She'll stay with us, of course. I can't leave her alone."

"I can assign some people to her—"

"I'm not leaving her alone."

Penny had allowed some of her barriers down last night, but she still wasn't trusting of people. Hector sighed, but nodded. "Let me take care of this, okay? I'll go into the building and find out what I know."

Penny said nothing to this. They found Martin's office building after a bit of searching, and pulled into the empty parking lot. As Hector shut off the ignition though, he said that one of the windows was lit up. Somebody was still inside. That would make things much easier for him. "Stay here, Penny. I'll go up and question that person still working."

Penny saw the lights on too, and frowned. "I'll follow in a couple of minutes."

"That's not necessary—"

"Hector, it's _him_."

Hector stilled, and looked at her. "Are you sure?"

"Absolutely. It's his heartbeat coming from that room."

Hector looked up towards the building once more. "Just wait here, okay? I'll put shields around the car so nobody can see you."

"But Hector—"

Hector took the form of mist and seeped out of the car. He also made sure to take the car keys with him so Penny couldn't run away from him again. He could hear her protesting loudly behind him, and her commotion woke Grace up. Hector did as he promised and casted shields over the sister. They would be invisible to the naked eye.

He rose up high to the lit window. It was a small office. It was neat and tidy, with an array of colorful framed photographs on the wall. The most notably one of a poster-board sized image of a horse. A young man was sitting at the desk, reading through some paperwork. He seemed rather…_slight_ for a man. Hector found it very unusual. _Martin Quincy._

Martin flinched in his chair, but remained focused on his paperwork. Hector seeped in through the window, not making a sound. Still, Martin visibly tensed up, as if he could feel Hector coming upon him.

Hector wasted no time. Baring his sharp teeth, he pinned Martin sharply to the desk. "Listen to me very carefully. I'm going to ask you several questions and you're going to answer them honestly. Do you understand?" he put full compulsion behind his voice, forcing compliance out of Martin.

Martin, however, didn't seem alarmed by this assault. He turned his head on the desk, as though he were trying to look at Hector. "Are you robbing me?"

Hector froze. The man wasn't responding to his compulsion at all. Growling, he delved into his mind, trying to find some means to control him. To his shock, his own mind encountered a strange obstruction in Martin's, creating lack of focus and loss of coordination. Hector immediately withdrew, not wanting to be caught up in that.

"_What's wrong?" _Penny demanded from down below. _"I'm coming up!"_

"_I do not think this one is with the Morrison Center," _Hector said gravely. _"And if he is, he doesn't know their intentions."_

"_How can you be so sure?"_

"_Because he is psychic."_


	9. Chapter Seven

I'll take this opportunity to apologize for not being active for such a long time. I feel terrible for promising to get back on track, and then not update until now. I won't go into too many details, but I experienced a personal tragedy just a few days after my previous update, and I didn't have the focus to update. As I've said before, this summer really sucked for me and autumn wasn't any easier. Hopefully with both over now I won't be jinxed anymore.

But thanks for sticking with me, guys. Hopefully things will turn around for me.

Chapter Seven

"_What you risk reveals what you value."_

_- Jeanette Winterson_

* * *

Penny was silent for a long moment. _"Psychic? Martin is __**psychic**__? Are you sure?"_

"_I tried to gain control of him, but was unable to do so. He must have a powerful mental shield."_

"_I'm coming up."_

"_Penny, that isn't—"_

But Penny's abrupt departure from him was answer enough. He reached with his mind to look outside, and saw Penny jumping out of the car. She was helping Grace out of the car as well, while holstering a gun over her shoulder. _"Penny, get back in the car! I have provided shields for you both, but once you leave the car people can see you!"_

Penny ignored him. He sighed heavily. _Should I expect anything less?_

"…Excuse me," Martin said suddenly.

Hector realized he'd still pinned the other man to the desk. He knew that Martin wasn't armed and otherwise wasn't a threat to him and slowly let him go. "I'm going to ask you a few questions," he repeated slowly.

Martin calmly smoothed out the wrinkles of his fumbled work shirt and glanced at Hector slowly. "I would ask how you got in here, but you've probably have been waiting a long time in here. You're not wearing a mask, either. Do you plan on killing me when you're done?"

He was frank and nonchalant about this situation, as though it mattered very little to him. It was surprising, but for some reason it gave Hector more and more of a feeling that Martin was in the dark. "I have no intentions of killing you. But you've made yourself a person of interest and I need honest answers from you."

"All right." Martin stacked his paperwork on his work. "Your approach is unconventional, though. Next time, just schedule an appointment if you need my help."

Hector ignored the latter part of his statement and calmly took a seat opposite Martin's desk. "Do you know a woman named Penny?"

Martin started very slightly, before he closed his eyes. "That name…it _does_ sound familiar, but I'm not sure."

"_How could he know my name if he's not associated with the Morrison Center?"_ Penny demanded suddenly. Hector sensed that Grace and her were in fact in the building; just one floor beneath theirs.

"_If he were psychic, he could hear your name from fragments of your thoughts."_ He regarded the young man before him. "You are uncertain?"

"Sir, I travel as part of my job. I meet lots of people all the time." Martin shook his head. "It's hard for me to keep track of names."

"Penny isn't a common name among women nowadays," Hector pressed. "So I must know if you know this name."

Martin gave him a long look for a moment. "Well, I…" his hand reached up to idly nurse his temple. "You…aren't _normal_, are you?"

Hector stiffened, and his body was instinctively poised for action. It was with great difficulty that he forced himself to calm down, even with Penny and Grace approaching them. _He is psychic. When he speaks of normalcy, he most likely is referring to those who do not have psychic powers, and those who do._

"What about me isn't normal?" he asked bluntly. He stepped forward and stared straight into Martin's eyes, as though trying to compel him to give him an honest answer. Even as he couldn't control him mentally.

"It's difficult to explain," Martin said plainly, moving away from him slightly. He seemed uncomfortable by the scrutiny, but it still puzzled Hector that this human male wasn't frightened in the least. He wasn't even nervous. "Humans are never normal though, are they? I-It's just that…" he leaned up against his desk. "There's something about you that's _different_. I can't really say for sure what it is, but you're different."

The office door suddenly burst open, and Penny rushed inside holding up her gun. Grace calmly followed her inside, and Hector resisted the urge to roll his eyes. "I thought I told you to stay in the car."

"I want answers," Penny said harshly. "And I don't care that he's psychic." She pointed the gun at Martin. "What is your connection to the Morrison Center?"

Martin stared at her blankly. It was still amazing to Hector just how calm he was, even with a gun pointed at his face. "So…Shelby Webster?" he floundered over the name briefly. "_You're_ the Penny this man was talking about? I knew my hearing was still good—"

"What is your connection to the Morrison Center!" Penny repeated harshly. She tried to step closer to Martin, but Hector grabbed her arm and kept her distance.

"Nothing, whatsoever," Martin said simply.

Hector eyed him carefully. For whatever reason he couldn't enter Martin's mind, but he sounded like he was being truthful. "You know of them, though?"

"They specialize in psychic research. They seem to be very secretive to me. But, I have no interest in them." Martin's speech was still very nonchalant, as though Penny didn't have a gun on him.

"None?" Penny asked. "When they specialize in psychic research and _you're_ a psychic?"

"Penny—" Hector began.

"What?" for the first time Martin looked stunned. "How did you know about that? Unless…" he narrowed his eyes and folded his arms over his chest. "_You_ wouldn't happen to be from the Morrison Center? Don't tell me I'm in their database, when I haven't even contacted them."

"I'm _not_ from the Morrison Center!" Penny snapped. "Those bastards ruined my life!"

"I can believe it," Martin said easily. "Any organization that specializes in "psychic research" clearly has exploitation to go along with it. I don't doubt that they would exploit any individual, whether true psychic or not, in order to make money."

"They aren't interested in making money," Hector said grimly. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Grace staring at the large photograph of the horse. "They're killing anyone who shows signs of psychic powers. Whether the powers are real or supposed."

Martin looked between all of them for a long moment. "I see…so you think I'm with the Morrison Center, and…" he glanced at Penny. "They're trying to kill you because _you_ also have psychic powers?" he glanced at Hector. "And you must also be a psychic too as well, right?"

"I am something you don't know of," Hector said. "And something you don't want to know of."

"That's…vague." Martin looked at Penny again. "I have nothing to do with the Morrison Center…Penny, is it? I'm sorry if I came off as being suspicious, but I'm not part of any group. I would ask why you had a fake identity, but is this also due to the Morrison Center?"

Penny was still for a moment before she slowly lowered her gun. "…Yes." She didn't trust Martin. The fact that he freely admitted his powers, without worry over who might hear him, showed that he had either a reckless or naïve personality. Just like her own father…

"What happened to your father?" Martin asked.

Penny snapped the gun back up and Hector moved so quickly that he was nothing but a blur, resurfacing right in front of Martin. "Let's get something straight," he seethed at him. "I am determining you not to be a threat to us, but you are _not_ allowed to read her mind. _Either _of these two minds. Do you understand me?"

"_You're one to talk, given that you're inside my head all the time,"_ Penny pointed out.

"_I am your lifemate, _päläfertiil_. It is my right and privilege to share your mind with you."_

Martin was startled by Hector's movements, but once again he didn't look scared. "I must apologize for that," Martin said. "Even though I'm a grown man, my powers are beyond me sometimes. I'm telepathic, you see, and sometimes I have no control over what I hear. I've been able to shield myself in the past, but lately it's been going haywire."

Hector didn't like the sound of that. It was one thing for a psychic child to have no control over their powers, but an adult? Someone who's had experience with said powers his whole life? _"Tariq, have you ever heard of such instances?"_ he reached out to the other Carpathian male.

"_The most I can detect is that he may be losing his mind from his powers," _Tariq responded. _"Did not the same thing happen to your lifemate's grandmother?"_

"_Yes, it did." _Hector glanced at Penny, who was slowly lowering her gun again but not her guard. _"It would be best then to leave this Martin Quincy alone and take my lifemate and the child elsewhere. One of our people can come for Martin separately and we can have one of the healers check him."_

"_The problem is what to do about his memory, though. If his powers are growing out of control, then this explains why you can't control him. But you are correct in suggesting that someone else take up his cause. Having the human man with you, as unstable as he is, is going to be very dangerous for your woman and the child."_

"Did you Photoshop this picture?"

Grace had been silent the entire time this confrontation had occurred, remaining in front of the picture of the horse. Now she was looking at Martin peculiarly over her shoulder.

"Actually, I didn't," Martin said, leaving his desk to carefully approach her. "I found this horse wandering while I was on vacation. It was such a wonderful find, because I've never seen a horse outside at night before. It had to have been a wild horse."

"It's the Karabakh breed, right?" Grace asked, looking at the photo once more. "He's handsome."

"Oh, so you noticed the breed." Martin sounded genuinely pleased by this. "Yes, the horse is undoubtedly Karabakh. And I'm amazed you know his gender, considering how obscure the picture is. But Karabakh horses are beautiful, aren't they?"

"I think so, too." Grace looked at Martin. Her eyes narrowed very slightly as she peered at him. For the first time since they'd stormed the room, Martin looked uncomfortable.

"I apologize for intruding upon you," Hector interjected, breaking the contact between the two of them. "But we must leave before our presence is detected. I trust that you aren't a threat to us, and so I will leave you alone. But you aren't to tell anyone we have come to you. Understood?"

Martin shrugged. "Who would believe me? Besides, I'd rather not draw attention to myself over this."

"Good." Hector reached down to pick up Grace into his arms and he reached for Penny with his mind. _"A hunter will be coming for him within the next few days to assist him with his uncontrollable powers. In the meantime, we can leave him alone."_

"_So you won't wipe his memory clean?"_

"_I'm unable to do so, _sívamet_. There's too much interference in his mind for me to even find a path."_

"Are you okay?" Grace asked Martin bluntly.

Martin was startled by her words. "O-Of course I am. Why wouldn't I be?"

"Just because I'm here," Grace said. "Doesn't mean you have to lie."

Hector froze at her words. _Lie? _What was Martin lying about, then? He saw Penny raise her gun again.

Suddenly, from behind them the massive window exploded. Cursing to himself, Hector flew to Penny's side with Grace still in his arms and shielded them both from the shards of glass. He sensed Martin dive behind the desk to avoid the debris.

It was all over relatively quickly, and Hector immediately opened his senses to the room. Someone had thrown something at the window. Since they were not on the first floor, it had to have been a calculated throw. He quickly scanned Penny and Grace for any injuries. Satisfied that he found none, he jumped to his feet and did a quick sweep of the room. He could hear an ominous '_beep_', and it didn't take long for him to locate a cylindrical object on the far side of the room, a red light blinking in time with the beeping. _A pipe bomb. _

Disgusted by the human weaponry, more so by his opponent's inability to face him man-to-man, Hector grabbed the pipe bomb and took off from the room and into the sky. Once he was quite a distance away from his lifemate and the others, he pitch the pipe bomb straight into the air, focusing his energy on it. _Contain the explosion, contain the explosion…_

The pipe bomb exploded just seconds later, but instead of emitting a loud blast and sending shrapnel everywhere, it simply went 'poof' and dissolved like sand, scattering to the wind.

Hector immediately flew down towards the earth, looking for the assassins who cowardly threw that bomb. They seemed to have fled the parking lot, but he couldn't afford to give chase at that moment. Especially with three humans he now needed to protect. _"Hector, are you all right?"_

Penny. She called out to him on her own to see if he was all right. He was taken off-guard by the warmth that spread through his chest at this. _"I am fine, Penny. I was hoping the men who did this would still be here, but they have already left. I will pursue them later."_

"_They followed us…and now they know about Martin, too."_

"_I know."_ Hector flew back up into Martin's office, where Penny was checking Grace for any injuries. As usual, the child showed no signs of trauma from the situation. Surprisingly, Martin wasn't raising much alarm either. As the sisters huddled together, he was standing at the large photograph of the horse, calmly taking it down.

"We will need to reach a secure location," he announced. For once, Martin looked startled to see him as the sisters turned to face him. "We have come here looking for answers, but you have run long enough, Penny. We are going to confront these foes here and we're going to stop them once and for all." _"Both the Morrison Center, and Sevan _päläfertiil_."_

Penny slowly nodded, not saying a word as she held Grace's hand in hers. "Where will we go from here?"

"Yes, where?" Martin looked at them over his shoulder. "I would offer you my own house to stay in, but since they've targeted my workplace I'm certain they know where I live."

"I know a safe house we can all go to," Hector said, though he was looking at Penny. _"He may have become a target because of our pursuit. We will keep him with us for the time being until someone else can come to watch over him. But I don't want you to be alone with him, _sívamet_."_

Penny rolled her eyes. _"I've been alone with him before, Hector. I hardly call him a threat."_

"_Still, don't be alone with him. I'm a rather __**jealous**__ man."_

Penny sputtered violently at these words. "Do I look like I _care_?" she snapped.

Grace looked up at her. "Are you _talking_ to him again?"

"You two have a telepathic link?" Martin asked. His voice was full of awe. "That's incredible! I've _never _been able to achieve that!"

Penny waved an impatient hand and suddenly turned on him. "How is none of this fazing you? We've burst in on you while you worked, and you were nearly killed by a pipe bomb! You're just taking this all in stride, and that's not normal!"

Martin shrugged as he set the framed photograph on the floor. "Nothing has ever really fazed me. These circumstances are a little…strange, but they seem interesting. I look forward to seeing where this goes."

_That's what you think_, Penny thought bitterly.

"_But it's better to not being able to control him and having him calm, than not being able to control him and having him hysterical,"_ Hector said.

That was true. But it didn't make Penny feel any better.

* * *

Hector took them to a small house right in the middle of the city. It was another one that Tariq owned, and Hector was grateful for the other hunter's reach throughout America. The safe house was right out in the open, but in order for anyone to attack it they would have to draw a great amount of attention to themselves.

Penny was in the backseat of the car, curled up with Grace. The child was fast asleep in her arms, but Penny was predictably awake. She looked absolutely _exhausted_, both physically and mentally. Hector hated to see her this way, and it disheartened him that she wasn't relieved about their plans. But the nonstop stress and never-ending running had taken its toll on Penny. This recent attack on them, in conjunction to the horrible car accident they'd been in, was wearing thin to an already weary body.

And he didn't intend for this madness to continue.

They pulled into the small garage inside the safe house. Hector was mindful of the time as he helped Penny and Grace out of the car. He would need to go to ground soon. "You need some sleep," he told Penny.

"I know." Penny leaned against the car and sighed heavily. "But do you mind if I sleep with Grace tonight? I've just…" she waved a furious hand. "I'm not in a good place right now."

Hector frowned at this. Penny gasped suddenly, and pressed against the car as an overwhelming feeling of love and comfort overpowered her mind and heart. It drove away all of the darkness inside her and her weariness began to dim. It was such a _pleasant_ feeling, and she looked at Hector. "Did you do that?"

Hector reached out with a free hand and buried his fingers in her hair. "Of course I did."

"I…" Penny had to look away. The fact that he'd taken all of the pain away from her, and in turn reduced some of her weariness, was amazing. It was also frightening. "Thank you."

"_You don't need to thank me, _sívamet_."_ Hector leaned forward to brush his lips over the top of her head. _"Your happiness is mine."_

Penny said nothing to this and tried to focus on Grace. It was all too easy to relax in his arms, but that only made her more uneasy. "We'd better put her to bed."

"Yes, all of you." Hector led them into the main house, where he could feel Martin moving around. The human was proving to be stranger than what he was use to. In addition to being completely unfazed by this sudden twist in his life, during the brief period they stopped at his house to grab some personal belongings he grabbed few clothes. The major items he'd grabbed were his laptop, some electronic equipment Hector couldn't begin to decipher, and some meager clothes.

Hector could sense that Penny didn't particularly like Martin's reaction to the news that he would have to abandon his career-job.

"_I was planning on quitting anyways. I'd rather go down to Washington D.C."_

As Hector found Martin fiddling with the phones, he felt somehow that he didn't want to ask _why_ the human wanted to go to Washington D.C. "What are you doing?"

"Bugging the phones," Martin said, attaching what looked like a small black sticker to the inside of the phone line. "With these, we can pick up any calls that come in. I tweaked with them a little, so that whoever calls all of their contact information displays on my laptop."

"I appreciate your efforts," Hector said. "But that won't be necessary. I have my own means of tracking the hunters who attacked us."

"I've never heard of that type of phone-tapping," Penny said slowly, folding her arms over her chest. "You didn't make that yourself, did you?"

"Not really, no. I purchased it." Martin finished up with the phone line and stood up. "Even if you have other methods, we can use this as an added security measure. I also have a satellite uplink that's untraceable."

"…And you're a communications tech for television?" Penny asked.

Martin shrugged. "It's a simple job that pays well."

"Y-You…" Penny looked at all the electronic equipment set up. There wasn't a whole lot of it, but all of it looked suspicious. "You're not a _cyber-terrorist_, are you?"

"No, of course not," Martin said unabashedly, walking back over to his laptop. His horse photo was propped up in a nearby chair. "But since someone tried to kill all of us—and that included _me_—I don't mind using this equipment for such a thing. I could see if the Morrison Center has a headquarters here in Portland, and maybe I could find their _main_ headquarters as well."

"That _would_ be most useful," Hector interjected. "But it is nearly dawn. I rest during the day, and I would recommend that you do so too, human."

"That's fine, I'll take watch during the day," Martin said. "But what do you mean by 'human'?"

"Let's put Grace to bed," Penny cut in, grabbing Hector by his sleeve and pulling towards the stairs. Before they went upstairs though, she turned to look at Martin over her shoulder. "I'm sorry."

"Why?" he asked.

"Because, I thought you were out to get me. Now I've gotten you involved in my problems." It was more difficult for Penny to say than she realized. Knowing that someone else's life was in danger now because of her was too much to stomach. "So I'm sorry."

Martin stared at her for a moment before he shrugged. "Maybe they were after me anyways. I can't shield other's thoughts as well as I use to, and sometimes I blurt out reactions to what I _hear_. I may have been leaked to them regardless."

It wasn't likely, but Penny shrugged. "But I'm sorry, in any case." She suddenly walked over to him and placed her gun on the coffee table next to his laptop. "I don't know if you can stand being up all day after this, but hang onto this."

"I'd…rather not," Martin said. "I'm not a real fan of guns."

"Welcome to my world," Penny said grimly, and Hector occupied himself with Grace. "But be careful."

They went upstairs and settled Grace onto a king-sized bed. Mostly because Penny intended to share the bed with her. "He is not a fighter," Hector sighed, tucking Grace in.

"Just because he doesn't like guns?" Penny asked. Their suitcases were already up there, but an unfamiliar pair of pajamas were already spread out on the bed. Penny knew Hector had gotten them for her.

"By his tone of voice. We may need to watch him, but in the slim chance we are attacked here he won't be essential for fighting."

Penny rubbed her forehead with the back of her hand. "I'm wondering, though, if his powers _are_ going haywire if it was wise to give him a gun."

"He is no threat to us…yet. But we'll all need to stay together until Tariq or another can come to watch him."

"…All right." Without really thinking about it, Penny began to remove her shirt to get ready for bed. When she realized what she was doing though, she quickly covered herself. "C-Can you leave?"

"You have nothing to be ashamed of," Hector said simply. "Our bodies are meant to be around each other. Study your feelings for a moment. Are you really embarrassed at my watching you?"

She wasn't, and that was the problem. "Please, just excuse yourself! This is awkward for me!"

"Changing is awkward?" Hector sat down in front of her on the bed and rested his hands on her bare shoulders. "You've changed in front of me before. Perhaps we need to be a little more comfortable with each other, _päläfertiil_?" his voice had dipped into an incredibly sensual whisper. His voice already invoked many feelings inside Penny, but now…

"G-Gracie is right here!" she blurted out. "Control yourself in front of her!"

"_Grace is asleep, _sívamet_. And if you do not carry-on more like this, she will stay asleep."_

"I—"

Hector leaned forward and gave her a kiss. It was such a simple kiss, but Penny immediately melted. It was such a strange feeling, to feel so strongly for someone like this when you didn't even know them.

"_You __**do**__ know me, Penny. I am your lifemate, and we are meant to be together. There is no one else on earth for each of us besides each other."_

Penny pressed her fingers into his broad shoulders, trying to ease away from him. He was completely unmoving as usual, as though his body were a brick wall. Hector sensed her discomfort though, and broke away the kiss. "You will sleep now," he told her soothingly.

"D-Don't put me to sleep," she pleaded quietly. "I'll go to sleep on my own, and I promise I won't run away. Just please don't put me to sleep."

"Don't beg me for anything, _sívamet_. I trust you." He eased her to lie down beside Grace. "Just as I would wish that you would trust me."

"I…" Penny swallowed thickly and closed her eyes. "I'm sorry."

"Stop apologizing. You have nothing to be sorry for." Hector leaned down and kissed her on the forehead. He could still feel the tension in her body, even as she gradually relaxed against him. "Now, get some rest. I will need to go to ground myself. Before I do so though, I'm going to try and induce sleep upon the human."

"_Martin_, Hector. His name is Martin. Or at the very least call him by his surname. Did you see the look on his face when you called him 'human'?"

"Dully noted, _päläfertiil_. I will try with this." it would be difficult, though, to deal with Martin. Hector had no experience dealing with a haywire psychic, whose unstable abilities have taken a physical toll on their user. Martin was unpredictable, and he didn't want the human around Penny or Grace in case he snapped.

But he couldn't deny the trouble Martin was in. And he was a psychic, as Penny and Grace were. He was in an unfortunate place and he needed help…but they weren't in any position to help him as they were.

"_Sleep, __fél ku vigyázak. My dear one. And do not worry. This madness will end very soon."_

* * *

Martin held the pistol in his hand, feeling the weight of it. Shaking his head, he tucked it behind a couch cushion. "Only if necessary…"

He suddenly began to feel that familiar numbing headache on the right side of his head. He sighed shortly, and fished into his bag. "Where did I put my medicine?"

"_**...Baby. My baby. Tell me where the baby is."**_

Martin froze, and he raised a hand to his head. Over the course of a single day he could hear many voices, sometimes overlapping each other. This voice…was crystal clear. _Disembodied_. It was a woman's voice and it was…it had a guttural echo to it. And though the nature of the words was pleading, the voice sounded…_evil_.

Martin strained his ears, trying to find that voice again. But all he heard was a jumbled mumble in his head. "…What was _that_?"


	10. Chapter Eight

All right, my update didn't go up when I said it would. It's not really a wise decision to promise more updates the week before the biggest holiday in America, I suppose. But here's the update now!

Chapter Eight

"_Worry does not empty tomorrow of sorrow - it empties today of strength."_

_- Corrie ten Boom_

* * *

"I think I've got it." Martin pounded a few keystrokes onto his laptop before a street map appeared on his screen. "Here it is. It looks like they have offices under the guise of a charity facility, but this should be the Morrison Center's headquarters in the city."

Penny looked over his shoulder, frowning a little. "Are you sure?"

"I did some hacking last night," Martin said. "And it appears our friends have made _quite_ a few enemies. They seem to run a system akin to the mafia, but they've had to be very careful for the past couple of years, especially since their members have been dying of weird circumstances. It almost reminds me of King Tut's curse."

"_The Morrison Center has engaged my people many, many times all over the globe."_ Hector came forward to stand behind the couch. He didn't like that Martin and Penny were sitting so close together, but he let that slide. _"Such individuals don't deserve to live."_

Penny glanced at him briefly before looking at the laptop once more. _"I agree."_

Somehow, even though they were talking about the Morrison Center, that bloodthirsty statement made Hector uneasy. He didn't like to hear Penny speak this way. It would satisfy him to hear her sounding more positive.

_But she's almost very little positive experiences in her life. It is only natural that she feels this way._

"In any case," Martin continued. "This charity facility is one of the many aliases the Morrison Center has had to put up in light of the threats against them."

"How did you find all of this out?" Penny asked.

Martin shrugged. "Like I said, I did some hacking during the day while you guys were asleep. I have a jammer on my laptop and so my internet hookup can't be traced."

Grace, who'd been looking at the photograph of the horse, looked up at this. "So you haven't slept at _all_?"

"I'm not really tired," Martin admitted. "And since it's not wise for me to leave this house, I felt I needed to be of some use to you guys."

It was still difficult to read Martin, but Hector could tell he was being truthful. He hadn't slept in over a day, but didn't appear to be tired in the least. "Thank you for your assistance," he said sincerely, though he deliberately leaned over the couch to create distance between Martin and Penny. "If you are able to find any other fake facility run by the Morrison Center, it would be useful to me."

"…I'll try," Martin said slowly. "But I've found at least ten different aliases for the Morrison Center in just North America alone. They're pretty slippery, that's for sure."

It made Penny feel better knowing that the Morrison Center had to go to such lengths in order to protect themselves from threats. But she didn't like that they were able to hide so easily. "So what do we do?"

"Not we." Hector straightened where he stood. "I will be the one to go and investigate this facility. If I am able to disable it, then this will eliminate the Morrison threat in Portland, at least for the time being."

"You're not going alone," Penny said harshly, standing up to face him. "These people are butchers and they ruined my life. They ruined _Grace's_ life! I deserve to be there to destroy them!"

"But I'm okay," Grace said bluntly, looking up once more. "I think they're bad people, but I feel okay. Can I hang this upstairs?" she changed subjects so quickly that it startled everyone.

"_May_ I," Penny corrected. "'May I' is not as demanding as 'Can I'."

"May I hang it upstairs?" Grace barely missed a beat, and she didn't look embarrassed about being corrected.

"Sure," Martin said, smiling at her. "You've seem to have taken quite a liking to that photograph, and I know you'll take care of it."

"Thank you so much!" A glimmer of child innocence shined in Grace's face as she picked up the giant photograph and hurried from the room. "I promise to take very good care of it!"

"I'm sure you will," Martin said.

Penny waited until Grace had hurried upstairs before she spoke. "Thank you for that," she said. "But you don't need to indulge her over something you obviously prize."

Martin looked at her as he rubbed a hand through his hair. "Prize?"

"Well…that photo_ is _the only thing you took from your office. And you made sure to bring it with you—"

"I _do_ like the photo," Martin admitted. "It sounds very strange, but there's something that draws me to it, most particularly the horse. But Grace likes it a great deal too. I think she'll have more use for it than I will."

Penny picked something up in his tone, then. Something that made her _uneasy_. There was a sense of finality in his voice. _"Hector?"_

"_Do not worry _sívamet_. He is most likely worried about our circumstances and might believe he will not live through this."_ It was only a long shot, though. Martin's mind was so chaotic, that he didn't want to try reading him in such a way again. The most he could do was sense Martin's emotions, and the human was very calm. He didn't fear death, but perhaps he thought it was inevitable?

…No. That didn't matter at the moment. And Martin was under his protection for the time being; Hector would make sure nothing happened to him. "Thank you for your research," he said. "Please give me the address and I will go there immediately."

"Let me go with you," Penny insisted, standing up. "I've lived in fear of these people long enough. And this facility no doubt has those monsters who tried to kill. I can help you—"

"I know that, Penny." Hector reached for her then, and cupped her face in his hands. "But you will be of greater assistance to me if you wait for me here. I cannot have you in danger again."

"I…" Penny wanted to argue, especially since Hector was denying her a chance at justice. But she could tell by Hector's voice, and his heartbeat, that he was genuinely concerned for her. Whatever he intended to do at this facility, he obviously didn't want her to see. She was certain she could handle it, but… "All right," she conceded. "I'll stay here."

Hector smiled, and brushed his lips over her brow. "Thank you, _päläfertiil_. I will return to you soon."

Martin had seen him transform into various shapes, but Hector found it preferable to leave the house in a human manner. He tested the wards all over the exterior and found them to be intact and not tampered with. Satisfied that his lifemate and charges would be safe for the time being, he took the form of an eagle and took flight into the sky.

Martin coughed very discreetly. "He's quite…passionate."

"I guess so," Penny said, sitting back down. "It's hard to believe I'd just met him."

"Just met him?" Martin asked. "As one man speaking about another man, I've _never_ seen a man handle a woman like he does you. I find it hard to believe you two are strangers."

"So do I," Penny admitted.

"_We are not strangers, _sívamet_," _Hector chided her. _"We are lifemates, and everything that we do together is natural."_

"_That's what you think,"_ Penny shot back.

"_It is what I __**know**__."_

Penny didn't have a response for that.

* * *

The facility itself was small, and dome-shaped. It looked very visually appealing for humans from the outside, because the exterior was lined almost entirely with windows. Hector knew that was mostly a security measure for the Morrison Center, so that vampires couldn't sneak in. During the day at least.

The facility was closed, and he could see a receptionist clearing off her desk in the inside lobby. But Hector obviously didn't need doors. From the form of eagle he took the shape of mist. As he seeped in through underneath the main doors, he could hear the woman behind the desk talking on her desk phone.

"—nothing new. Yes, I'll be sure to email you that new list before I leave."

_New list?_ Hector picked up the pace and entered the inside of the lobby. The woman was no doubt talking about a new list of people! The one Tariq had brought to the warriors had been very long…and yet they had even more names?

Hector retook his natural shape and advanced upon the woman, who had started to sit back down at her desk. He was in front of her in a matter of seconds, and he quickly had her mind. _"You will not scream or react to me."_

And she didn't. Fear was in her face for a brief moment before it relaxed. Very quickly he checked her mind to see if she had any ill-intent, though he highly doubted it. He kept his senses open though, and searched the building. It was small; not a lot of floors or inner chambers. And he couldn't sense anyone in there who shouldn't be there. It relieved him somewhat that nobody was being tortured, but he could sense that people had been brought and held here that hadn't wanted to be. _This isn't a permanent facility. This feels more like a gateway into the Center itself…_

He froze. Two floors beneath them he sensed a familiar presence. In one room he heard four men talking and laughing amongst themselves. But Hector knew who they were. _The ones who attacked us._

"_You found them?"_ Penny's reached startled him. He smiled slightly at this, inwardly pleased that she would communicate with him across such a distance. _"What will you do?"_

"_Take care of them."_ Hector regarded the woman he still held under control. As he'd suspected, though she worked for the Morrison Center she was outside the loop of its true intentions. She'd thought the new list she was sending out was about people she wanted to help. "Listen to me very carefully," he spoke to her compellingly. "Who was it that just called for the list?"

"Mr. Greene," she answered automatically. "He wanted an update on the people we were helping."

"_Greene?"_ Penny asked. _"Don't tell me she's talking about __**Sherman Greene**__?"_

"_Do not fret _sívamet_. You had killed him, remember? It is most likely a relative or someone with a coincidental last name." _"How often do you send out these lists?"

"It really depends. We're not a common charity organization, so not a lot of people come here. And besides, Mr. Greene is sort of prejudice, so I can understand some people's concerns?"

"Prejudice?" Hector asked. He kept his mind on the four men downstairs.

"Well, we've taken in quite a number of people who need help, but Mr. Greene is too particular about _who_ we can help. He said we have to keep our eyes open for special 'traits'." The woman shrugged. "I've been trying to help anyone I can, but he said he would fire me if I didn't bring him the _right_ people. But who is the right people when it comes to charity?"

"How many people are here right now?" Hector could sense there were fifteen people in the building, but he wanted to be absolutely sure.

"Fifteen," she confirmed. "It's after-hours though, and there's generally not that many people here right now. But I guess something happened a couple of days ago in the company and they had a meeting earlier. And Mr. Greene was really pushing for a new list."

"_Something happened?"_ Penny echoed. _"That must be when those bastards tried to kill us!"_

"_You are most likely correct, _päläfertiil_."_ Hector leaned in close to the woman, already beginning to distort her memories. "You will gather everyone who is in their offices on this floor and leave immediately. You will tell them that you received a bomb threat but cannot pull the fire alarm. Before you leave, you will bring up your list on the computer for me."

The woman said nothing, but she calmly did what she was told and opened up a few files on her computer. "This isn't the only computer that has the lists," she told him. "Our server here has the lists on all of the computers. Most of these have already been sent out."

"Thank you," he told her curtly. "Now, _go_."

She stood up and hurried off to report the false message to her fellow coworkers. Hector could sense no blood thirst in the people on this floor. Only in the four downstairs.

Hector quickly scanned the four lists on the computer. Two of them only had five names on it, but one of them had twenty. The most current one had thirteen. It frustrated him that these humans had no idea what they were doing to these innocent people they thought they were helping. And since three of these lists had already been sent out, simply deleting them wasn't going to help.

_But it's a start._

He had minimal computer experience, but he maneuvered the mouse on one of the files to erase the entire thing. Before he could do so, though, all of the text was quickly highlighted. Within seconds the files was wiped clean, and the window went away. Puzzled, Hector watched as each list came up, and every name on the list deleted, and without him doing anything.

_As long as these names are permanently deleted from the system, that's fine with me._

The thought was no more finished when the computer began scanning itself, and the system, for the files. Each search came up with nothing, and Hector let out his breath. _"Penny, the lists are gone."_

"_I'm happy to hear that." _And she had genuine joy in her voice. _"That's weird, though, what happened to that computer. Martin's typing a lot on his computer, should I see what he's doing?"_

"_We'll leave that for later, _sívamet_." _Hector had almost forgotten about Martin's computer skills. _"In the meantime, I need to take care of a few troublesome individuals."_

"—police have been called?"

The facility workers were being evacuated. Hector took the form of mist once more and sought an entrance to the basement levels. People were milling out of the building behind him, and for good measure he instilled a powerful feeling of unease over everyone so that they wouldn't return.

The four downstairs hadn't noticed the commotion of everyone evacuating. Hector found the way downstairs and reached the first basement floor. The men weren't on this floor, but a floor below. He looked down the corridor with a deep frown. All of the doors on this floor were made of steel, not wood, and each was numbered. The doors were locked, but Hector pushed them open with ease. Some of the rooms had office furniture in them, but three rooms had a cot with a single blanket. There was no one in these rooms, but it was easy to see what these rooms were for.

_Holding cells._ His stomach twisted in disgust. _They disguise the rooms as extra office space, but they keep their victims held here to transport elsewhere._

Hector scoffed, and deliberately cut himself off from Penny as he went down to the second level. This level looked no different, but he could hear loud talking coming from one of the rooms. The butchers were down here, and they were laughing. They'd tried to murder Penny, Grace, and Martin just last night, and yet they carried on with their day like everything was normal. It was amazing to Hector of the dark nature of humans. He'd seen it firsthand when they had a large hand in the genocide against his people. He'd seen it as well in Neve, the mage who had nearly killed him. It was not so difficult for them to align or be manipulated by vampires, when their natures were so evil themselves.

_But not all humans are like this,_ he reminded himself, thinking of the three humans at the safe house. And he thought of the Crane sisters, who were in Romania. _They are not all evil. It's just a matter of weeding out the ones that are._

He stood in front of the door where the assassins were. He could hear the root of their laughter. They were talking about Penny, and they thought her life's turmoil was _funny_. A snarl rose in him as he took the form of mist once more and seeped in under the door.

"—Greene was angry!" one said. "He wants that woman dead!"

"How were we supposed to know she'd survive that pipe bomb? Her and that stupid kid?"

"It can't be helped we can't find them! But they can't have gone far; we'll get them eventually!"

Hector quickly materialized in the room, and grabbed this man by the throat. In moments his trachea was crushed by his grip, and he dropped him on the floor. The other three men shouted, and one slapped his hand on the wall as they took aim.

"Bastard!" one shouted. He pulled out his gun and fired it wildly at Hector. But Hector was able to shape shift again, and his bullets hit one of the other men. He quickly changed back and grabbed the man by his wrist, even while the gun was firing, and turned his hand up so that the next bullet hit the man under his chin.

"I know you!" the final man shouted. This was the one who'd hit the wall, and he trained a gun on Hector. "You're a vampire! You're _evil_!"

Hector laughed humorlessly. "There is only one evil in this room, and it isn't me."

The man's eyes went wide, and he suddenly clutched at his throat, at the invisible hand strangling him. He dropped his gun and struggled to breathe.

"You have threatened my lifemate and her sister," Hector said. "And you are responsible, no doubt, for the suffering of countless individuals who have been held here. You deserve nothing but death."

The man was dead on the floor moments later. Hector took a deep breath and let it out slowly. The threat of _these_ assassins was gone, but more was going to follow.

He jerked suddenly, and looked towards the ceiling. He sensed _more_ evil approaching! More butchers were coming to this facility! But how…?

He looked at the wall, where the man had hit. The piece of the steel tile had sunken in. The man had hit a security switch, and had summoned reinforcements.

"_Köd alte hän_," Hector swore to himself. "Darkness curse it." _"Penny, I will be back a little later than I thought."_

"_Are you okay?"_ Penny had been uneasy when Hector had closed himself off to her. Now he sounded very irritated.

"_I am fine. But I must take of something first."_ Hector knocked the door down and took flight, speeding down the corridor and up the stairs to the first floor. He quickly scanned, and saw that the oblivious employees had already departed. The unease he'd instilled in them seemed enough to send them all home. All that was left were more assassins, and they were armed to the teeth. He paused at the corner leading into the front lobby, and saw a dozen men in militia outfits, with automatic rifles, coming into the building like a human SWAT team. Hector tried not to sigh. This would create a greater body count within the building. It would be the most logical solution to dispose of these men and then set the building ablaze. Any bodies that would possibly be found their deaths would be blamed on the fire.

Before Hector could move to strike though, something happened. As the butchers stormed in, suddenly two that had been walking side-by-side were flung to opposite sides of the lobby. Their blood sprayed everywhere, even on their cohorts, and alarmed shouts rose in their ranks. As the men turned all around, a shadow fell behind one of the man, and the individual snapped the butcher's neck with one hand.

Hector drew in his breath shortly. _Carpathian._

Could this be the reinforcements that Tariq had sent him? No matter; the hunter was helping Hector, and Hector knew he had to assist the hunter. He quickly joined the fight, as the hapless humans opened fire on their surroundings, shattering glass all over.

They were fighting simple human hunters, so the fight was quick. Humans were such a fragile species, after all, so a quick snap of a neck or a torn throat was enough to stop them. Their panic though was quite irritable, as more of their bullets shattered the windows on all sides of the dome. Hector quickly threw up a shield over the area, stopping any flying bullets from going too far and possibly striking an innocent civilian.

The last human was barely dead on the floor, when the unknown hunter raised a hand into the air.

"_Unclean alter smeared all bloody/_

_Innocent screams echo the night/_

_From my fire, cleanse this cuddy/_

_Wipe the evil, make it all right."_

Fire erupted from his hands. Hector put his faith in the hunter to destroy the building and he took off into the air and out of the facility. His feet touched the sidewalk several feet away just in time for the small dome building to burst into a violent ball of fire. He could sense human alarm all around, but he continued to shield himself. He took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. This did very little to solve Penny's problems with the Morrison Center, but their facility in Portland was now gone. And so were more of the men trying to kill her.

Hector turned, and his mind reached for the hunter who materialized beside him. He could tell this one was older than him, quite possibly an ancient. He was just taller than Hector, though they had a similar build. His eyes were dark, and quite piercing, but his hair was very long, and hung over his shoulder and to his waist in a tight braid. He had darkness in him, that was for certain, but he hadn't turned. That was a relief.

"_Én jutta félet és ekämet_," Hector greeted, extending his arm to the hunter. "I greet a friend and brother."

The hunter clasped forearms with him in the warrior greeting. "As with you. I would greet you in kind to stand against the darkness, but I sense you are different from me."

"I have found my lifemate," Hector clarified. "So I need not stand against the darkness anymore."

"I am pleased for you." the hunter released Hector's arm. "Tariq sent word that you were in need of assistance. I am currently on my own mission, but I will gladly help you if necessary."

Hector believed him, but just to check he reached for Tariq to see if he was truthful. _"He was the closest hunter to you,"_ Tariq clarified. _"So I felt he would be the most help to you."_

"Thank you," Hector said aloud sincerely. "I am Hector Lacuna."

"Yes, Tariq had told me your name." the hunter raised a fist to his own chest. "Brahm Shasarazade."

"_Shasarazade_?" Hector blurted out in shock. "I'd thought you'd all died out!" but he quickly corrected himself. "Forgive me; that was rude of me."

"There's nothing to apologize for," Brahm said. "I _did_ lose most of my family when our people were nearly wiped out. The only thing that saved me was that I was still under Prince Vlad's banishment during the massacre."

Banishment. That piece of information made Hector somewhat uncomfortable, but he sensed that Brahm still held true to his honor. "I appreciate your help with this. Might I ask what your most current mission is prior to this?"

"Before I do so," Brahm said. "Let us go somewhere a little more secure."

Hector remembered that they were still outside what remained of the Morrison Center, and police and paramedics were milling around them. They couldn't be seen as they were, but it was still better to go elsewhere. "I agree."

Both of them took the shape of an eagle and took flight into the sky, away from the accursed place and towards the safe house. Hector was instinctively worried about exposing his lifemate, and Grace, to an unbound male. But he remembered some aspects of Brahm, or at least of his lineage, and he knew that the Shasarazades had always been close and honor-bound. Tariq would not have sent him if he couldn't be trusted.

They landed on the front lawn of the safe house, and changed back. However, they didn't enter the house just yet. "Can you tell me your mission now?"

Brahm stared up at the house for a moment. "I feel…uneasy."

"It would be the unstable human," Hector clarified. "Martin Quincy's psychic powers are out of control. I can't read him or control him."

"This will be a problem." Brahm gave him a hard look. "Why would you leave your lifemate alone with him?"

"He has helped me so far," Hector said defensively. "And he directed me to that facility."

"…All right." Brahm slid his hands into the pockets of his dark coat. "I'm looking…for my sister."

Hector felt a cold jolt overtake his body. "…Sister?"

"Ever since the genocide against our people, I've had nothing," Brahm said slowly, staring at the perfectly cut grass. "Nothing but my darkness, and the shame of not being there to help my family. They are dead…but my sister is alive."

"I…" Hector floundered for a moment, guilty that he had to reach with his memory to remember Brahm's sister. "You had three sisters, correct? Olivia, Sabria, and…Diana?"

"Dianthe," Brahm corrected. "Do not apologize," he quickly added. "For they are not your family, and I know you have lost much yourself. But…yes. I know that Sabria and Dianthe were murdered as well, but Olivia is alive."

"Y-You're certain of this?" It was coming back to Hector then; the scandal that had surrounded Olivia before the massacre had occurred. Olivia had fled the land before or after Chiwen Vercera had committed suicide, so she hadn't been caught up in the genocide. Was she…?

"I am _most_ certain," Brahm said harshly. "Olivia is alive. I cannot feel her, as I have been unable to do so for centuries, but I _know_ she is alive. And she is in this country."

"How do you know of this?"

Brahm's face darkened. "Because Doromene is still hunting her."

Hector's throat dried and he regarded Brahm with horror. "H-He is?"

Brahm nodded stiffly. "He has been hunting her for over six hundred years. But…time has changed him. He too was not at home when our genocide occurred; he was too busy hunting for Olivia. So he was not at home to protect his family when they were all murdered."

"So he…?"

"Instead of choosing the dawn, he chose to become vampire. He has blamed Olivia for everything terrible in his life. He feels that if Chiwen had not killed himself, he would not have left home. And if he hadn't left home, he wouldn't have lost the rest of his family."

"But nobody _made_ him be in charge of her investigation!" Hector seethed. "I understand what he suffers, but he is not the only one! _I_ too lost my family! Fatima died senselessly because I couldn't protect her! But I hung on this whole time! He…" Hector stilled though, and stared at Brahm. "So Doromene has been vampire since the genocide?"

"Yes," Brahm said.

"That's _centuries_ old. Then he is…a _master_ vampire? Just like the _Malinovs_?"

Brahm nodded. "Because he still hunts her, even as a vampire, _that_ is how I know Olivia is alive. And she is hiding somewhere in this country."

"Because Doromene is here?" Hector asked.

Brahm nodded. "I just came out of a battle with him. He was very powerful, but thankfully I had three other hunters to help me. We were unable to kill him, though, and he fled. But he was mortally wounded; he will need to go to ground for a long time to heal. While he is incapacitated I'm looking for Olivia to bring her under my protection."

"I'm certain you will find her," Hector said. "She is an ancient, like yourself. She will not be easily found by a vampire."

"She is all I have left," Brahm said bluntly. He looked out over the darkness of the street. "I am close to turning, Hector. Stopping Doromene and finding Olivia have given me goals to keep me busy, but in truth it is all that is keeping me going. I am over a thousand years old, but I have not found my lifemate."

"She is out there," Hector said. "And you will find her. The Daratrazanoff twins were over two thousand years old before they found their lifemates."

"But they had each other," Brahm pointed out. "All I have now is Olivia until my promised one comes to me. A vampire wouldn't hunt a dead woman, even on a lark, so she is most certainly alive. But if she is not…then all of these years of searching have been for nothing."

"You will have defeated a master vampire," Hector said. "And _that_ counts for something."

Brahm looked at him slowly again. "When you become as old as I am, and have killed many vampires, this victory feels meaningless."

Hector didn't like the sound of that. "It's not a meaningless victory when you protect mankind. You _must _hang in there, Brahm, or your promised one will suffer for it. Don't forget what happened to that Crane girl."

"I wouldn't dare to. And I have had _many_ experiences with poor women whose lifemates gave their souls away. It is _never_ an easy situation to handle, and I will hold on so she won't have to suffer it." He paused before he continued. "But I _must_ find her soon. If I have Olivia with me until I find her, then my trials won't be so harsh. Sadly, I'm putting too much faith in the hope that my sister is alive. If she is in fact dead, and Doromene is playing a trick on me, I…" he didn't finish the sentence, but the silence was foretelling.

It was uncomfortable for Hector to see such a proud warrior speak so pessimistically, but he knew what the older one suffered. It had to be difficult for Brahm to keep seeing hunters younger than him find their lifemates, and build their families, when he himself had no lifemate and no family. It reminded Hector too strongly of his own circumstances. What if he had this sort of belief about Fatima? Had he not seen and held his little sister's body in his arms, before finding Penny any possible word of her being alive would send him in frenzy. He would've searched nonstop for her, as Brahm was for Olivia.

Because he had Penny, he could once again feel grief for Fatima, but he could also accept her terrible death. And he could feel sympathy for this hunter, even as encouragement from one man to another was awkward for him. But hearing of Brahm's sorrow reminded him too strongly of himself, and what he had suffered…

"_Hector? What's the matter?"_

Penny. All at once Hector was at ease, and the pain he felt for Brahm wasn't as severe. "Let's go inside," he said. "I can introduce you to my lifemate, and you can take a look at the human as well." He deliberately omitted Grace from the introductions, although he knew Tariq would have told Brahm about her.

"…All right." Brahm said nothing about the child and they headed up the lawn towards the house.

Hector reached for Grace, and sensed the young girl upstairs, drawing pictures underneath her horse photo. As usual she was very calm about her circumstances, and wasn't the least bit distressed.

Penny looked up at both hunters came in through the front door. She was immediately wary of the stranger behind Hector, but more so she was shocked at the immense relief that consumed her when she saw that Hector was all right. She hurried over to him. "You didn't answer me, Hector. Are you okay?"

Hector reached out and caressed her cheek. "I am fine, _sívamet_." He _was_, now that he was back at his lifemate's side. But he was worried about the turmoil inside of him. Or rather, the distress he'd felt for Brahm that had yet to go away. _I am with my lifemate. Everything is fine now._

"So what happened?" Penny asked. "Did you take care of those monster at the Morrison Center?"

"We found that it was an incredibly small facility," Hector said, moving into the living room. Martin was still seated in front of his computer, and for once he was showing signs of exhaustion. "It was most likely used as a gateway to the broader end of the organization."

"Was?" Penny repeated. "What do you mean, 'was'?"

"The facility has been destroyed. Don't worry; the casualties were minimal—"

"Hector, these people are _killers_!" Penny insisted harshly. "Look what they've done to my life!"

"I understand, but most of the individuals I have found at the building are mere…shall we say, worker ants. They know nothing of the inner workings of the Morrison Center, or have any idea they sentence people to death when they log their names into the database." He looked at Martin then. "I have a limited knowledge of human technology, but when I brought up the database, it was inexplicably deleted. Did you have a hand in this?"

Martin shrugged slightly. "The Morrison Center has a vast network that I can't even _begin_ to hack. This facility, however, is incredibly small and not very well maintained." As he typed a few keystrokes, his right hand began to tremble again. He jerked it down to his side. "I don't know if that list was transmitted already to the Morrison's headquarters, but hopefully any new names on the list will remain out of the Morrison's sphere."

"_This is the human?" _Brahm asked Hector. _"What is wrong with his hand?"_

"_He's blamed it on epilepsy, but it is most likely a side effect of his uncontrollable telepathy,"_ Hector said. _"I'm inexperienced though, with haywire psychics…"_

"_So am I. But it is better that I take the risk of checking him than you."_ Brahm walked over to stand in front of Martin.

"Who is that?" Penny hissed to Hector.

"_Brahm Shasarazade. He is an ancient and he helped me with the facility."_

"…Oh." Penny looked back at them. "Will Martin be okay?"

"_We aren't going to hurt him, _päläfertiil_. We are merely going to check to see how unstable he is, and if he is safe to be around you."_

Martin had looked up from his laptop and stared at Brahm for a long moment. "…Do I know you?" he asked.

Brahm reached for his mind. Hector didn't have a blood connection to Brahm and so he couldn't see how far Brahm reached into Martin's mind. He hoped that Martin's condition wasn't anything too serious.

Brahm quickly looked at Hector. He revealed nothing on his face, but Hector heard him clearly. _"He is very unstable, Hector. I do not know how he is sane right now; his mind is full of chaos. Something must have happened to him to have caused this, because this sort of thing is very rare in adults."_

"_Do you think someone tampered with his memories and it imbalanced his powers?" _Hector asked.

"_That is a possibility. But this isn't a normal mental deterioration. __**Something**__ has caused this, and it's happened over a short period of time."_

"_Maybe someone put him here as a plant without him realizing it." _Hector locked his jaw. _"He may not realize it, but he might be being used as bait."_

"_I don't think that's the case, Hector."_ Penny had heard only a little of their conversation. _"They were trying to kill him too at his job, remember?"_

"_I understand, _päläfertiil_. But it is entirely too coincidental that the day after meeting Martin Sevan was able to reach out to you. And the Morrison Center found us relatively quickly when we arrived here."_

Penny gave him a hard look. _"Are you saying that the Morrison Center is now using psychics, in addition to __**vampires**__, to turn people into puppets? Even if that was true, I don't think that's what happened to Martin! I spoke with him while you were gone, and he's very normal! And I can sense when he's lying, and he hasn't really lied to us other than saying he has epilepsy! And he doesn't seem all too concerned about his own condition at all!"_

"_If he were being controlled, Penny, then he wouldn't realize he was lying."_ Hector felt a surge of jealousy over Penny's defending of another man, but he ignored it. It wouldn't do any good to get angry now. "Martin," he said aloud, regarding the human male. "Have you been in contact with any suspicious people?"

"Well…" Martin looked between the two hunters before his and ran a hand through his hair awkwardly. "Other than these current circumstances, I don't recall anything. And I run into a lot of people on the road because of my job—or rather, _former_ job." He looked at Brahm again and lowered his hand. "You haven't answered my question. You seem familiar to me, but I think I would remember if we'd met before. Have we?"

Hector looked at Brahm, but the hunter said nothing to him and remained focused on Martin. "I am someone you don't want to meet or know. I hunt the terrors of the night, and bring death to evil. I walk with the darkness, and not in the light."

"…Okay," Penny said uneasily.

"_That is what we Carpathian males are, Penny,"_ Hector said sagely. _"Our lifemates are the goodness and light to our world. While we are dark and at times very unpleasant."_

"_But you aren't unpleasant with me."_

"_I'm glad you think so. But as you already know, I am not unpleasant to you __**because **__of you."_

Brahm raised a hand and gestured at Martin. "Sleep."

Martin blinked for a moment and stared at him blankly. "I-I guess I'm tired, but I'm not quite ready for bed yet. I would like to—"

"_Sleep_." Hector stepped forward and reached for Martin with Brahm. "You will sleep, Martin, and not awaken until we tell you to."

It seemed like another long moment before Martin's eyes closed and he fell back against the couch. Brahm double-checked to make sure he was sleeping. "It took the both of us to put him to sleep. Even if he isn't being controlled by someone, he is unstable. We must take him away from here."

"To where though?" Penny asked. "You both are acting like I can't take care of myself. I think that if Martin suddenly snapped and attacked Gracie or me, I could handle him."

"And you would put your sister in that situation?" Brahm asked harshly.

Hector immediately tensed. "I understand Martin's potential danger, but you will _not_ reprimand my lifemate, Brahm."

"Grace is very keen at sensing danger," Penny said defensively. "And she _does_ sense something wrong with Martin. But if she thought he was dangerous, she would say so. And she would _certainly_ tell me!"

"Don't get upset, _sívamet_," Hector tried to soothe her. "You have had a very stressful couple of weeks. A very stressful _decade_, I might add. We have crippled the Morrison Center's hold on this area, but they are bound to send people to investigate the destruction of their facility. In the meantime, we must focus on the threat in Sevan, especially since he is challenging us by killing children."

"The behavior of the vampire worries me as well," Brahm cut in. "For him to kill children so brazenly indicates to me that he is unstable. Generally, a vampire would show restraint in his kills as to not bring too much attention to himself. But this one is killing children, almost ritualistically, when his standard target would be a developed woman. And he has been hunting you as long as the Morrison Center has, correct?"

"Yes," Penny said. "This is why I don't understand why you two are so focused on Martin. There _may_ be something wrong with him, and I don't like that he can't control his psychic powers at his age. But I think Sevan is a greater threat right now, and we ought to focus on him."

"Martin isn't a threat," Hector said, coming to his lifemate's side. "But we _must_ be concerned about his instability in case he _does_ snap. This happened to your grandmother, Penny, and I want to avoid this happening to this human."

"I—"

"Penny?"

All three of them jumped at Grace's call from upstairs. Penny swallowed thickly and walked towards the stairs. "What is it, Gracie?"

Grace was sitting on the top step, staring down at her calmly. "Can you come up here, please? I don't feel good."

For the first time, Penny noticed that Grace's heartbeat was fast and incredibly erratic. She hurried up the stairs and reached for her sister. "Do you have a fever?" she felt Grace's hand. "Hmm, you feel cool. Is it your stomach?" but it was her heart. It was beating so fast, like she was having a panic attack. But Grace never had panic attacks.

"I feel funny," Grace said bluntly. "But I don't know why."

"Okay, sweetie. Come here…" Penny lifted Grace into her arms and carried her back into the bedroom. "Can you tell me what's wrong?"

Hector deliberately stayed downstairs, because he knew Penny wanted to handle this situation with Grace by herself. Even as he could see what was going on with the little girl through Penny's eyes. "It has been a long night. Martin is asleep now, and surely won't awaken without our prompt. I agree that he needs to be taken elsewhere, but since he's unconscious right now I believe he can stay here for the time being."

Brahm was silent for a long moment before he nodded. "I must go. I do not feel at full strength; both this fight and my battle with Doromene must have worn me out."

"And you are searching nonstop for Olivia, though you are helping me now," Hector added. "Please go feed and come back here to go to ground. This is one of Tariq's houses, after all, and there are chambers for us beneath the basement."

"Thank you for the offer, but I will go to ground elsewhere."

"That's not nec—"

"I have upset your lifemate and I don't want to create an unpleasant environment here, even as a temporary shelter." Brahm paused before he continued. "I intend to seek Sevan out as well, before I go to ground. If he is here, and if he is seeking another child, I will find him first. If we get rid of the vampire first, then all we will have to deal with is the idiotic humans from the Morrison Center."

"Thank you, Brahm. The sooner this nightmare is over with for both Penny and Grace, the better off us all will be."

Brahm nodded. "Before I leave, let us exchange blood so we can keep in constant contact. I will also take blood from this human, just in case there _is_ something wrong with him that it will not affect you as a claimed male."

"Thank you again. And with any luck, this will be over with in an expedient amount of time."

* * *

Colorful pictures were strewn on the floor. Penny made sure not to step on any of them as she sat Grace down on the bed. "Tell me, what's the matter?"

"…I don't know," Grace admitted. "I was up here drawing, and…I just started feeling _strange_. It didn't feel right to me."

"Have you had any nightmares? Or did you hear that song?"

Grace shook her head. "No, I didn't hear anything. I just feel…" she suddenly rubbed a hand over her heart. "Wait. It's…it's sort of fading. I almost feel like I'm returning to normal. Before my head went sort of funny, like floaty. And my chest started hurting so badly and…but it's gone now."

Penny swallowed again, and tears stung her eyes. She had a feeling of what was causing Grace's discomfort. Though the child never showed it, their life was so very troubling. Grace was no doubt suppressing so much inside of her, and maybe this sick feeling was an accumulation of years of torment. _And I did this to her…_

"Penny."

Penny jumped straight off the bed as Hector materialized into the room. Grace however didn't even flinch. "Is everything okay?"

"Y-Yes," she stammered. "Gracie says she's feeling better now."

"I can check her briefly if it's all right with you both."

"She—"

"Okay," Grace said. "You saved Penny after the car accident, right? So I'm sure helping me will be a piece of cake."

"…All right," Penny said reluctantly. She sat down on the bed and collected Grace's hands in hers.

Hector knelt down beside the child, and examined her mind. It was almost refreshing to see such a clear mind after seeing Martin's mind and worrying about it. But he sensed no fever in Grace. Her breathing was even, and her respiratory tract was clean. Her heartbeat was a little uneven, but it was a lot calmer than it had been earlier. So what had caused that panic attack? Grace had been calm throughout it, so she didn't seem consciously distressed about anything.

_Perhaps it's as Penny said. She is getting comfortable here, but maybe this temporary home is a reminder that she hasn't ever had a real home before now._

"It looks like you'll be fine, _csitri_," Hector said, patting Grace on top of her head. "So you have nothing to worry about."

"Thank you," Grace said sincerely. "It just seem weird to me. One minute I was fine and the next I wasn't."

"It's been a very difficult time for us," Penny said. She reached out and pulled Grace into a tight hug. "Get some sleep and you'll feel better tomorrow."

"Get some sleep?" Grace repeated. "But I slept all day. I'm not tired right now."

Penny couldn't really argue with that, and she didn't want Hector to force Grace to sleep like he did Martin. "We could put on some soothing music while you draw. Or you can daydream about your horse." She motioned to the large photograph propped against the wall.

Hector walked over to the small radio on the dresser and saw a pile of CDs beside it. On top was an album by the Dark Troubadours; not a corporate one, of course, but a CD the Carpathian musical group had made especially for their people. "This music will calm you. I shall put this one in."

He slid the CD inside the radio, and after a few musical rifts Desari Savage's beautiful voice flooded the room. Penny felt almost instantly at ease to hear this voice. It didn't calm her as well as Hector could easily do, but it was incredibly soothing.

"It's pretty," Grace said after a moment. "She's like you, isn't she Hector?"

Hector managed a smile. "That's correct. So try to relax and listen to this music. And neither of you have to worry; nothing will ever harm you ever again."

"_Don't make promises like that,"_ Penny said. She couldn't keep the pleading from her voice. _"Grace is realistic, but she might believe that we aren't going to be hunted."_

"_I am here, Penny. And we have the support of my people, and a hunter who is aiding us. We have dismantled the Morrison Center's facility here, so for the time being all we'll need to do is worry about Sevan."_

"_And what happens when they send more psychopaths after us?"_

"You guys aren't talking," Grace said. "So you're talking telepathically, right?"

"I'm sorry if we're making things awkward for you," Hector said. He reached for Penny and stood her up from the bed. "I will take your sister elsewhere and speak to her."

Penny's heart skipped a beat. "That's not necessary—"

"If you're going to make out," Grace said. "It'll be better to do it privately. You guys did it in front of me before."

"We didn't make out!" Penny insisted.

"You guys were kissing. That's making out."

Hector couldn't help but laugh. "We'll be more discreet next time, _sisar_."

"We…" Penny didn't feel like arguing the point that they wouldn't be making out again. She scoffed in frustration. "Fine! We'll go to another room, what do you want to talk about?"

"…Much." Hector took her by her arm and led her out of the bedroom. He glanced back over his shoulder to see Grace relaxing on the bed. She was looking at the horse photo once.

Satisfied she would be safe; he focused his attention on Penny. Despite the simplicity of the night, he wanted very much to merge with his lifemate. Both for her sake…and himself, as well.


	11. Chapter Nine

I don't really have an excuse for why I haven't updated in so long. The best I can offer is that I've been working constantly, and I ended up quitting one of my jobs because of stress. I'm really sorry for the lack of updates. I _do_ intend to finish this story for everyone, though; as an added incentive for it, I've even written part of the final chapter to this already. Anyways, here's the new chapter.

Chapter Nine

"_To find fulfillment…don't exist with life – embrace it."_

_- Jim Beggs_

* * *

Hector was always such a hard person to read. It's not that he closed himself off to her, but his life was too _open_ to her. He laid everything out of his life in his head to her, and fully expected her to look at his memories, and get to know him.

It was easier to just read his emotions. But his heart pumped in synch with hers, as though they were a single person. Even now it was unsettling.

Hector led her into another bedroom. It was a very inviting room, even if it was a little bare. There was only one window in here, but it had steel inside shutters to shut out any sunlight. That would make it easier for him to move around in the house if he had to during the day.

"_Something is odd about this blood. It's not corrupted, but there's something…not quite right about it."_

That was what Brahm had said when he took a little of Martin's blood. Just a little though, and not enough to count for a blood exchange. The other man had still been unconscious, but Brahm's claim made Hector a little uneasy. What if a mage_ had_ gotten to Martin? Maybe that was the "taint" that Brahm could sense. Hector didn't like knowing so little about the human man.

Penny slowly sat down on the bed. "Well, what is it?"

Just seeing her dark eyes on him was enough to dispel Martin from Hector's mind for the moment. Without saying a word swept over to her and took her into his arms. He curled his body around hers and gently guided her to lay down with him on the bed. The feel of her in his arms gave him such a profound sense of comfort. He could feel the ache in his chest of the sympathy he felt for Brahm, and his tragic predicament. Mostly in part because it was all too similar to his own circumstances, and he fully understood the pain and emptiness the unclaimed hunter was experiencing.

"Hector." Penny felt slightly awkward as she slid an arm around his abdomen. His body felt warm, and to lie here like this with him was so…_natural_. It made her heart pound. "Did something happen at the facility?"

Instead of responding, Hector leaned over and pressed a kiss over her mouth. The sensation of it was almost too much for him. He groaned quietly and pressed small kisses around her mouth, on her cheeks and across her face. He buried his fingers into her curls and arched her neck slightly, his mouth moving over her chin and downwards.

Penny knew he was going to take her blood, drink from her again. She knew she could say no, and try to push him away. But she didn't want to. He was kissing her so _simply_, and yet it stirred many things inside of her. It was terrifying, but she couldn't deny him. She didn't want to. As if sensing her thoughts Hector leaned back up and claimed her mouth once more with a deeper intimacy than before. He maneuvered her so that she was underneath him on the bed, still kissing her so deeply. Penny could feel a soft groan in her throat and she dug her fingers into his shoulders.

Hector broke the kiss with great reluctance, and buried his face into her dark curls. He took in her naturally sweet scent, and his body clenched with need once more. But he knew he couldn't claim her body; not yet. Though she hadn't run from him again she still was wary of him. He could feel her fear of him taking her blood, and he knew better than to take it any further than that. He knew it would be difficult for her to understand that he was trying to keep her safe.

He couldn't deny himself anymore. And, he didn't want to scare her further by prolonging the wait. Hector dipped his head down, gently tilting her head back with his hand. He tenderly kissed along the curve of her neck, feeling her pulse pound strongly against his mouth. His tongue slid over her skin, directly above her pulse.

"Hector—!" Penny gasped.

His teeth gently grazed her skin before they sank deep. Penny gasped again, and her eyes squeezed shut at the sharp pain. Her fingers dug deep into his shoulders. She knew she had to push him away, but she wasn't. Instead her hands curled into his shirt and her body arched against him. As much as it hurt, feeling his mouth on him and taking her blood invoked so many feelings inside her. She was scared, and she thought it was all crazy…but her body was relaxing, her heart slowing down and easing away from panic. Her head fell back against the bed, only held steady by the hand he had woven into her curls, his other hand bracing himself against the bed.

Hector pulled himself away from her, gasping for breath. The feel of her skin against his mouth and her blood inside him made his body so incredibly hot and full of need. He lay her fully down upon the bed, as he forced himself to relax. His natural instincts were ordering him to claim her body and to complete the ritual of their bond. And oh, how he wanted to give into temptation!

But…but he looked down upon Penny. Her body and her soul had instinctively submitted to him, but not her mind. And he'd taken too much blood; her eyes were closed, surely now because she didn't have the strength to open them, and her breathing was labored. Her face was so pale too…her hair looked black surrounding it.

Hector cursed to himself, and scrubbed a hand through his hair. It was what he intended, but he regretted not showing restraint, and taking too wantonly from Penny. There was nothing he could do about it now. She needed blood, and this would count as her second blood exchange.

"I give of myself freely to you, _sívamet_," he spoke aloud, slowly removing his shirt and baring his broad chest. "Anything and all of me…my body and my life, I give only for you."

He cradled Penny into his arms as the fingernail on his index finger extended. "You must drink my blood, Penny. Please, take from me of your own free will." He cut a line straight over his heart and guided her head towards the wound. "Don't be afraid…"

Penny's head felt so heavy…and she knew Hector had taken a lot of her blood. Not enough to be lethal, but well over enough. And she knew that he wanted her to drink his blood. She groaned weakly in dismay, and awaited his compulsion on her mind to force her to drink.

Only, it didn't come. She could smell his blood in front of her, but he wasn't taking control of her. He'd wanted her to take his blood freely, without the compulsion. That he was giving her this much freedom was moving, but he still took her blood!

"Don't fight me," Hector soothed, gently pressing her mouth over his wound. "Take all that you need, _päläfertiil_. My life exists just for you…"

It was unnatural. People just didn't drink blood! But Penny felt the hot fluid under her lips. She remembered the taste of it the last time he'd given her blood and though it frightened her, she still remembered it. And…it didn't disgust her.

_Because I need it. Because I need the blood because he took it from me…_

She opened her mouth on her own and started to drink. She tried not to think about how _weird_ it was—she was still a human, after all. Nor did she want to think about how _good_ it felt.

It was a struggle for him to maintain control. He held onto her so gently, trying not to give in to the temptation of possessing her. This was enough…this _had_ to be enough for now!

It was a little while longer before Penny regained most of her strength, and she tried to pull away. "Stop it, Hector."

Hector released her, and sealed his wound. "Are you okay, Penny?"

Despite having her strength back, Penny's arm still felt like a lead weight as she raised her hand to wipe her mouth. "Don't ever do that again. Don't think you can just take my blood whenever you like! You _know_ what it does to me! How sick it makes me feel, and how I can't eat or look at lights! So _why_ did you do it again?"

Her anger stung him deeply, but Hector knew that he deserved it in a way. "Forgive me, _sívamet._" He retrieved his shirt and slid it back on. "Being around the hunter forced me to recall painful memories. I've lost too much in my life, and if I…" he shook his head. No, no. He couldn't _think_ of the possibility of losing Penny. If he did he knew he would go mad as when his father Alcyone had done when he lost his mother Jacynta.

Penny relaxed at the sadness in Hector's voice, even as she still felt a measure of anger. "D-Do you mean Brahm? What did he say to you?" she remembered that when Hector had been with Brahm that Hector felt great distress and that had affected her as well.

Hector slowly moved down to lie down beside her. Penny didn't like that her body immediately relaxed and molded into his. "He is suffering, Penny. He once had a large family, with three younger sisters. He lost them all, as I had lost my own family. But…" he paused before he continued. "He has reason to believe one of his sisters is alive, and he's scouring the world trying to find her."

"I-I see…" Penny swallowed thickly as she looked at him. Brahm had seemed very intimidating to her, but she could tell by his heartbeat that he was suffering greatly from sadness. It almost reminded her of Hector when she first met him. "Did he lose his family…the same way you did?"

"Yes," Hector said reluctantly. He gently stroked her hair. "I'm sorry I acted so impulsively as to take your blood. I may have my colors restored to me, but the fact you live in constant danger does cause me some stress. If anything were to happen to you, I would lose myself entirely. So I will do everything in my power to keep you safe."

"Like giving me your blood?" Penny asked. "You've done it twice already. If you keep doing it you're going to change me into a Carpathian, right?"

Hector paused, choosing his words carefully for her. "That is correct, Penny. But because this exchange has distressed you, I will not do it again without your permission."

"Good," Penny said firmly. "Because I don't _want_ it to happen again. I'm perfectly happy and _safer_ being a human. The fact that you're Carpathian, while it helps us, also disables us because we can't move around during the daylight. If I'm turned, I'll never be able to see sunlight again!"

"That…isn't necessarily true," Hector said. "A vampire cannot be touched by any rays of sunlight. A _Carpathian_, however, is able to go out during dawn and dusk. We are at our weakest though when the sun is at its highest, and then we _must_ go to ground."

"Still," Penny said. "My life won't be _normal_ if I'm turned!"

Hector looked at her very closely. "Your life has never been normal, _päläfertiil_."

He was right. He was absolutely right. Her life stopped being normal the day Landen decided to lend his talents to the Morrison Center. Ever since then it's just been constant running and worrying over herself, and Grace. "I…" she ducked her head.

"Penny." Hector pulled her into a tight embrace. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't be talking to you like this. You are my lifemate and it's my duty to put your needs before my own. I'm not lying to you when I say to you that things would be easier for you if you converted to a Carpathian. We are a hunted species, but we take care of each other. You wouldn't be in danger so much if you went through with it."

"…And Gracie?" Penny asked quietly. "What would happen to her?"

"Of course I wouldn't convert her," Hector said. "She is just a child and she needs to develop as her own person. Converting her would be safer for her as well, but I would _never_ change her as a child." Then there was the fact that Grace had the same abilities as Penny, which meant she most likely had a lifemate. Hector knew several years down the road she may meet her lifemate, and _that_ hunter would convert her.

"I won't convert either of you," Hector insisted. "Never without your permission. I make this vow to you, Penny. I know you would be safer as a Carpathian, but I won't push you into it."

It was what Penny needed to hear. She felt sick and tired, but she allowed herself to relax fully into his arms. "Thank you, Hector."

"But it is Grace," Hector said. "That worries me. She has been traumatized more than any child should be. I believe—"

"_No_."

"Penny—"

"You're _not_ going to erase her memories," Penny said sharply. "And Grace wouldn't want you to, either!"

"_Sívamet_, Grace would have no awareness afterwards that her memories were tampered with."

"It's still no, Hector. I don't feel comfortable doing that to her."

"Penny, I'm not doing this to be malicious. We've unfortunately had to do this in the past with children. Aidan Savage erased his lifemate's younger brother's memories after his traumatic experience with a vampire. Rafael De La Cruz did the same with his lifemate's younger sister, when she saw her brother under the influence of a vampire. It's very important to understand a developing child's mind, Penny. We have to think about Grace's future, and how all of these traumas may affect her later on in life."

Penny saw his point, but she still shook his head. "Gracie isn't like that. I believe that these experiences, while traumatic, are still part of her life. I don't feel right giving her the illusion of a happy childhood."

Hector felt her turmoil over this, but also her resolve in refusing this offer. "All right, Penny. I will not wipe her memories without either of yours permission. But let's not dwell on this now." He stroked her cheek and kissed her on her forehead. "You need sleep, _päläfertiil_."

"Don't put me to sleep," Penny insisted.

"Don't worry, I won't." Hector smiled at her. "But I will lie with you until you do fall asleep."

"O-Okay." Penny allowed herself to relax against the bed. After a moment, she opened her eyes to look at him. "Hector?"

"What is it?"

"Thank you."

Hector pulled her closer into his arms. _"Anything for you."_

* * *

Penny didn't know how it could be nighttime. Even the hall light was hurting her eyes. She had to shut off all the lights she saw as she ventured through the house.

Hector was gone when she woke up, but that didn't surprise her. She knew he had to go to ground to fully regain his strength.

She looked in on Grace. The child had been able to sleep on her own for once, without a prompt for sleep. Now she was fast asleep, her body curled up next to the picture she had drawn. Curious, Penny walked into the room, reluctantly turning on the light as she looked at the picture Grace held onto. It was another colorful picture of a horse. It looked identical to the one in the photo. The horse was running, but the sky behind it was dark blue. She'd drawn it in a nighttime setting.

_Well, it's really no surprise. She hasn't seen much sunlight for awhile._

Penny tucked her sister in a little more tightly and left her alone to head downstairs. She started when she saw Martin slumped on the couch in the same position he was left in yesterday. Feeling awkward for being the only person awake, Penny ventured into the kitchen to prepare something to eat. There wasn't any meat in this refrigerator, but that didn't really surprise her. Hector seemed quite adamant to avoid meat altogether, which Penny found a little annoying but she knew she wasn't much she could do about it. Just the thought of food though made her stomach turn, but she knew Grace would be hungry when she woke up. Martin would most likely be hungry too, though she hadn't really seen him eat.

She was preparing a vegetable stir-fry when the back of her neck suddenly tingled. "Good morning, _päläfertiil_."

"It's _evening_, Hector," Penny said, nearly jumping out of her skin. She dropped her knife on the cutting board. "You're lucky I didn't use this on you!"

"You wouldn't stab me, Penny. And besides, I would stop you before you did so." Hector pressed his nose very lightly against the back of her neck. Her scent was stirring him, and his body filled with need. But…he knew he had to exercise restraint and patience. "It was kind of you to prepare something to eat for the others."

"I want Grace to stay healthy," Penny said. She tried to shake Hector's hold on her, but he wasn't budging. "After last night, I want her to be as comfortable as possible."

"She was calm during her panic-attack, Penny. It shows that she is a strong girl." But even saying it made Hector uneasy. He didn't like that the child had to suffer so much throughout her life, even though Penny's suffering was much more profound. "Grace will tell you if anything bothers her."

Penny sighed softly. "I don't think she would, Hector. She only told me about that panic-attack because she didn't know what was going on with her heart. But I don't think Gracie would show her fear to me because she doesn't want me to worry." She shrugged stiffly. "It's just in her nature to act calm around me, to further ease my troubles."

"But _I_ would be able to sense if anything bothered her, too," Hector said. His eyes wandered to Martin, who was still asleep on the couch. "It is my duty to look out for you, so that all of your life's troubles never bother you again."

"I appreciate it, Hector, but everything wrong with my life won't just simply disappear." Penny finished chopping up the vegetables and dumped them into the frying pan. His conviction in giving her an easier life made her a bit uneasy…especially since she wanted to believe_ strongly_ in his words. "Will Brahm be stopping by?" she asked, wanting to change the subject.

"I have not heard from him, _sívamet_." Hector disguised his unease at this thought as he left Penny's side to approach Martin. After checking on his lifemate and the other humans in this safe house, he had reached for Brahm. He'd been surprised to sense that the other hunter was closed off to him, and hadn't responded to his calls. "But he is in pursuit of the vampire, so he must not want any distractions."

"…Okay," Penny said after a long moment. She stirred the vegetables idly, glancing at him over her shoulder. "Are you going to wake Martin up? It took the both of you to put him to sleep, so wouldn't you need Brahm here to wake him up?"

"It shouldn't be necessary, Penny." At least, Hector hoped not. He never had an experience of needing another hunter to put a human to sleep, but that was probably attributable to Martin's haywire psychic powers. "_Kidü_," he commanded, waving a hand over Martin's face.

In an instant the man was awake. His blue eyes were incredibly groggy, and he blinked several times in confusion. "…What?" Martin slowly sat up, and rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand. "I fell asleep? What time is it?"

"Just after seven," Penny called from the kitchen. "I'm making a vegetable stir-fry for dinner, if you're hungry."

"No, I'm not really hungry. But thank you anyways." Martin pressed a hand to the right side of his head as he looked at Hector. "I slept through last night, all day today, into tonight? I could've sworn I wasn't feeling tired last night. Did you have a hand in that?"

"You need your sleep, human," Hector said coldly, though he felt Penny's sting at his rudeness. "I can tell by your body that you hadn't slept in three days prior to last night. Men drop dead because of such carelessness."

Martin shook his head slightly before he nodded. "You're absolutely right. I need to be more careful." He reached for his laptop, which rested on the coffee table. "Did you want me to look more into the Morrison Center? Find out about this Greene they were referring to?"

Hector nodded. "Yes." He glanced towards the kitchen. _"You don't need to defend this human, Penny. He is incredibly reckless with his lack of care for his own body. He doesn't sleep like a regular person, and he's not eating like a regular person. I cannot help but be incredibly suspicious of his actions."_

"_Maybe that has to do with his psychic powers. Maybe they're causing an imbalance."_ "Martin," Penny called from the kitchen. "You really _do _need to eat! You haven't eaten since we came here!"

"…All right," Martin said slowly, typing into his laptop. "Thank you, Penny."

Hector tried not to bristle at the growing familiarity between the two of them. He knew that despite these human relations, it couldn't transcend the bond between lifemates. "Keep us informed about what you find…please."

Penny snorted from the kitchen. _"That's a start, somewhat."_

"It wouldn't really surprise me if this Greene was related to the one you were talking about," Martin said, typing furiously into his laptop. "With the kind of activities that the Morrison Center does, it's better to keep these sorts of things…_in_ the family, more or less."

"You care correct," Hector conceded. "We've dealt with many cases in the past where families work together, whether within the Morrison Center or through…other means." He stopped short of actually referring to vampires in front of Martin. "So it would really be no surprise if this new Greene is related to the previous one."

Penny sighed, idly stirring the vegetables in the pan. _"I seem to have racked up a list of enemies. The Morrison Center and Sevan. But it's not anything I'm not use to, I just wish things were much easier for Gracie."_

"_I will make everything better for you both, _sívamet_," _Hector told her. _"That I promise you."_

It was easy to make promises, but not to keep them. Penny said nothing as she turned the heat off on the stove. "The stir-fry is done." Try as she might though, she didn't have the appetite for this food. She knew it was because of Hector, and because he gave her blood. It would wear off in time she knew, but if she followed his lead and went through the whole conversion, then she could never eat like a normal person again.

"_Don't be bothered by notions of normalcy, _päläfertiil_. There is no such thing as normal. You may find that the life you have with me is __**very**__ normal."_

"Somehow I doubt that," Penny said aloud, coming into the living room.

"Eh?" Martin looked up from his laptop. "I'm sorry, did you say something?"

Penny realized she'd spoken aloud when Hector and she had been conversing mentally. She flushed in embarrassment. "I-It's nothing."

"I still find it amazing you two have a psychic link in such a way," Martin said, continuing his search on his computer. "It must be nice to have such an intimate link in such a way."

"It—"

Hector interjected. "It is certainly a privilege…Martin." He reluctantly referred to the human by his first name. "The bond of a lifemate is deeper than simple marriage."

"Hector, that's—" Penny tried to cut in.

"You're very lucky," Martin said thoughtfully. "A lot of marriages fail in this day and age, but your relationship sounds more _intimate_ than that. Most people never get to experience such a thing in their life." He shrugged idly. "I'm certain _I_ wouldn't be so lucky."

"_As a human male, he is quite correct,"_ Hector said.

"I-I'm sure _you_ will find someone, er, sometime," Penny said, glaring at Hector for his comment.

But Martin only shook his head. "I'm never going to get married."

The finality of his tone took Penny off guard. She knew that a lot of people preferred solitude to companionship—she was one of them—but the way Martin had said it made her uneasy. It almost felt like…he didn't _want_ to say it, but _had_ to.

"I've got it!" Martin said suddenly. He pointed to the screen. "Look here. Ulysses Greene."

Penny took a seat at the couch and looked over his shoulder. Hector moved beside them but with a little bit of concentration he forced Martin to move slightly away from her. It was slight enough that Martin didn't notice, but he could tell by Penny's glare that she _did_. "So this is the one they referred to?"

"More than likely," Martin said. "He's the only one I found that would match up. But man, look at his track record!" Martin scrolled down the list of crimes he'd been arrested for. "He was arrested for suspected murder _eighteen times_?"

"I'm sure he had a hand in all eighteen murders," Penny said coldly, looking over the list herself. Ulysses had also been arrested six different times for suspected sexual assault. Just knowing that increased her nausea…and derision. "That's not counting the other possible murders he got away with."

"Let me see his picture," Hector said. Seeing the list of heinous crimes the man had committed further increased his rage. Whether or not this man was the one after Penny, he _had_ to pay for everything that he had done.

Martin scrolled all the way up to the top of the page. "There it is."

Penny looked at Ulysses Greene's face. Seeing his face, and seeing his eyes… "Ugh." She pressed a hand over her mouth and closed her eyes. He looked like Sherman. He looked like the man who butchered her mother, and undoubtedly killed her father. This _had_ to be the man hunting for her!

"_Penny."_ A warm feeling engulfed her mind, pushing away all of her unease. _"Do not be frightened. We will stop this monster. I swear that we will."_

Penny lowered her hand from her mouth. She no longer felt sick. She still felt uneasy, but she certainly felt better than she had a few moments ago. "Thank you," she said to Hector.

He smiled back at her. _"Anything for you, _päläfertiil_."_

"It looks like he's the _older_ brother of Sherman," Martin said. Already it seemed he was getting used to the quiet dialogue between Hector and Penny. "Would you like me to double-check Sherman's record?"

"No," Penny said firmly. "I already know he's a murderer too, and I'm glad he's dead."

Martin's mouth formed a thin line. "I can imagine that his track record's as bad as Ulysses. But I would like to check his crime pattern if that's okay."

Penny waved her hand. "…Whatever." She leaned away from Martin and refused to look at the computer screen. It was bad enough seeing Ulysses's face, but if she saw the face of the man who ruined her life…

"_Please do not distress. Sherman is dead and you avenged your parent's death. I can see Martin's concern though in checking that monster, especially since his living brother is the __**older**__ one."_

Penny knew Hector was right, and his presence in her mind, constantly wiping away all of her negative feelings, was having a profound effect on her. She didn't want to depend on anyone, _especially_ a man who depended on her so fiercely, but it was hard not to.

"…As I thought," Martin said, closing out of Sherman's profile. "Sherman's rap sheet is just as long, but it increased in velocity after he joined with the Morrison Center. As for Ulysses…" he scanned his profile as well. "It looks like Ulysses joined the Center first, and he was the connection Sherman used to join."

"…Sherman had a lot of power," Penny said very quietly. "He visited one of my high schools posing as a counselor. And he was the last person eyewitnesses saw my father with when he…_disappeared_." Her hands clenched into fists in her lap. "And he seemed to be in charge of my mother's…" she shook her head, unable to articulate that horrible memory into words. "He…"

"It looks like," Hector said, quickly coming to Penny's side. "That Sherman had been in charge of the investigation into your family. And I know, _sívamet_, that you believe since he had such a job, and since his brother brought him into the Morrison Center, that Ulysses has more power."

"That might be correct," Martin said. He was scrolling through another page. "I've brought up a credit card statement that _might_ be his."

"How did you do that?" Penny demanded, sitting up straight. "And _why_? Do you have any idea how dangerous that is? What if he can trace you?"

"I told you," Martin said. "That my satellite uplink is encrypted. About the only organization that could possibly crack it is our own government, and I seriously doubt the Morrison Center would ever reach that far."

"And this place is shielded," Hector reminded her. "No human can detect it."

Penny tried to relax, but it wasn't easy. "Is it really his credit card statement?"

"It's a long shot," Martin said. "Because this card has his real name on it. But I see purchases criss-crossing all over the East Coast."

Penny skimmed the list, and a growing sense of dread filled her. All of the different cities listed on the bill for the purchases were cities both Grace and herself had lived in in the past few months.

Hector felt her distress, and read the list. Towards the top of the list he saw various purchases made in Boston, and clenched his jaw. "He really _is_ after you, Penny."

"—_Greene was angry! He wants that woman dead!"_

"…If he's been hunting me this long, as Sevan has," Penny said slowly. "Then he probably wants to kill me because of Sherman."

"It…doesn't look like Ulysses has arrived here in Maine yet," Martin said. "And he might have to lay low for a while because one of their facilities exploded."

"But he is a criminal," Hector said. His eyes held Penny's. "I know these type of humans, and he will not be idle for long."

They heard the foot-falls on the stairs, and Penny knew Grace was coming downstairs. "So Ulysses might still come for me? To avenge his brother?" she shook her head in disgust. "Unbelievable. His brother murdered both of my parents. Why would it shock him that I killed Sherman?"

"When your heart is full of evil and darkness, you don't need to look at other details," Hector said grimly. "To him, all he sees in you is his brother's killer, not as the daughter of both of his murder victims."

Penny swallowed thickly bit down on her bottom lip. She saw Grace reach the last step and forced a smile as she stood up from the couch. "Good evening, Gracie! Did you sleep well?"

Grace stared at her as she entered the living room. "So the bad guys are still coming for us?"

Penny's smile faded. "Grace—"

"You're upset, Penny. If everything was okay, you wouldn't be so upset."

"…You're very keen," Martin said thoughtfully. "Just by hearing a heart rhythm you can sense emotions?"

Grace shrugged. "I'm just keen with Penny. Hers is the only heartbeat I've ever heard every single day of my life."

Hector almost smiled, but he kept his face serious. Grace's sage-like demeanor was beneficial for their current environment, as life-threatening situations didn't seem to faze her. But it still made him uneasy that she was eight years old and yet didn't act like a child. She didn't even act like most adults would in this type of situation.

_This is something I'll take care of later._

"_Don't tamper with Gracie's memories," _Penny said warningly. _"She's just a child."_

"_It would only be for her sake, _sívamet_, that I would alter her memories. She's had nothing resembling a normal childhood, as you have. I would only do this to lessen the sting of her daily trauma."_

Penny didn't have a reply for that. She watched Grace enter the kitchen and calmly serve herself a plate of the vegetable stir-fry. Grace was always naturally a very calm child, despite her life's circumstances. There had been a time when Penny had thought that Grace would be a traumatic person, especially in light of how she was…born. But Grace was calm, even in a life-or-death situation, and not a lot fazed her. Even now though, Penny wasn't sure if this was a good thing or bad thing.

"Oh, that reminds me," Grace said, setting her plate down on the counter. "When I woke up I was hearing voices, again."

"_W-What_?" Penny screamed. She rushed to her sister's side and grabbed her shoulders. "Are you okay? Did they say anything bad to you?"

"I was sleepy, so I wasn't paying attention really. I don't know, it sounded like someone was mumbling inside my head—"

Hector gently took Grace from Penny and looked at the little girl. "Was it a man or woman speaking to you?"

"I really don't know," Grace said honestly. "I was tired, so all I heard was a mumble. It sort of quickly cut off after a minute."

Hector looked at Penny briefly before he looked at Grace. "_Csitri_, I can look into your memories to see if I recognize this voice. Is it all right with you if I do this?"

"Hector—" Penny said.

"Okay," Grace said. "If you know the person, then the better we'll all be, right?"

Hector managed a smile. "That's right, Grace." _"I know you're uneasy about me looking through her memories, Penny,"_ he said through their connection. _"But I promise you I'm not using this as an opportunity to erase her memories. I wouldn't do something so sneaky without your consent."_

"_Like convert me into a Carpathian?"_

Hector stiffened, and he looked at Penny again. _"I'm a very patient man, _sívamet_. I've been looking for you for six hundred years. I can wait longer, if necessary, until you are ready for conversion."_

"_And what if I'm never ready? What if I want to be a human forever?"_

"_Then I will stay with you, forever. And when you die of old age, I will walk into the dawn."_

There was no hesitation in his words. It really was as simple as that for Hector. His unblinking sacrifice for her was so surprising that it took Penny off-guard. And…she felt uneasy. She wasn't use to anyone doing something like this for her. It was always _she_ doing the lookout, for herself and for Grace. But Hector…he wanted to protect her, and be with her. In his mind, protecting her meant changing her into a Carpathian. But if Penny wasn't consenting in this, then he would leave her as a human. Could someone really be so unselfish?

Penny was too stunned to respond. Hector took the time to enter Grace's mind. As usual he found comfort in her youthful, yet sagely innocence. Many minds he tampered with had some darkness to them, but there was nothing dark about this child. Only Penny's mind was far more beautiful to him, but both sisters were refreshing. It made Hector incredibly nervous of the unclaimed hunters in the world. Skyler had triggered Dimitri's colors at the unheard of age of _sixteen_, mostly because the horrendous trauma she'd experienced for many years had aged her. Would Grace's demeanor and lifelong trauma be enough to induce colors?

"—_above the world so high. Like a diamond in the sky—"_

Hector pulled himself from Grace's mind once that voice struck him. "_Sevan_," he said aloud. "The vampire has contacted her."

"He has?" Penny cried out. She pulled Grace into her arms and stood up. "Then he knows where we are! Quick, we need to move! Otherwise he's going to kill more children!"

"So it was him?" Grace said neutrally. "That's weird. Why would he contact me?"

"We're not going anywhere," Hector said. "No more running away, Penny. This insanity ends now. We're going to stop Sevan _here_, and we're going to stop the Morrison Center here."

"So we stop Sevan," Penny said heatedly. "What then? We can't stop the _entire_ Morrison Center! It's like you told me, they have global influence and have been around for _years_! I understand you're trying to help us, but if you think everything is going to magically be better for us, you're mistaken!"

"Penny." Hector rested his hands on her shoulders. "We Carpathians may still have small numbers, but we are stronger than humans. And, our numbers are growing more and more each day. I must be honest with you, though the Morrison Center is a threat to us, they are a _minor_ threat. At one point we had to combat the Morrison Center _and_ the sorcerer Xavier. But we've had _many_ victories in the last several years, and now we've had very little to worry about."

"…Xavier?" without realizing it, Penny reached for his mind. She saw a hollowed, decrepit face with dark eyes full of evil. Beyond this face, she saw…_bodies_. Bloodied, charred bodies strewed everywhere. She saw the charred remains of a tiny little body, of an innocent face…

"Penny!" Grace was tugging on her hair. "Are you all right? Are you all right?"

Penny realized she'd been screaming. Her arms turned to jelly, but Grace slid simply out of her arms and to the floor. Hector held her once more and was looking at her with alarm. "_Päläfertiil_, what is wrong? Is the vampire trying to control you?"

Penny's breathing was ragged, but she looked at Hector. She could felt her heart pounding strongly in her ears, but she felt it twist up inside her chest. She was taken off-guard by the sadness that overtook her. "Hector…" she swallowed thickly before she continued. "Xavier…he killed your sister?"

She looked at more of his memories. As much as it pleased Hector that Penny was trying to get to know him better, the memory she'd seen caused him great pain. _"Xavier didn't directly kill Fatima, Penny. But he instigated the genocide against my people, which included the murder of my former Prince. My whole family was killed on that day, but Fatima's death could've been avoided. It was my absolute carelessness that killed her."_

"But…she looked like a _toddler_!" Penny cried out. She grabbed him by the front of his shirt. "What kind of a monster kills a child in such a way?"

"Who can really tell?" Hector said softly. He had to close his eyes and suppress that awful image as much as possible. "But we lost so much that day. However…Xavier was finally,_ finally_ killed recently. My only regret was that I wasn't present when Ivory and Razvan ripped his body and soul apart."

"I…" Penny looked at Grace briefly, who was staring at Hector with an unreadable expression. She looked back at Hector. "I'm so sorry, Hector. What's happened to me…I wouldn't wish on anyone. But it'd happened to you? And you lived with it all these years?"

"_We are far too similar with our tragedies_, sívamet_." _Hector pulled her into a quick hug. _"But we have each other now. All I ask of you is that you trust in me a little more. I will never lose you, or Grace, to the monsters who have ruined you. I will protect you both no matter what."_

"Hector," Grace said. "You lost your family, too?" she shifted her feet uncomfortably. "I'm sorry."

Hector managed a smile to her. "I appreciate that, _sisar_."

On the other side of the room, Martin watched all of this in silence. It was slightly uncomfortable for him to watch such an intimate scene, but more so it was uncomfortable to see the suffering in these people. It seemed so cliché for them to find each other after what they'd suffered in their own individual lives, but it seemed like a blessing as well.

"_**Tell me where the baby is."**_

Martin winced, and raised a hand to his head once more. He didn't understand why that voice caused him so much discomfort. He'd only heard it once, but it bothered him. So many voices bombarded his unfiltered mind that it gave him so many headaches.

But that voice…that woman's voice, if it could be _described_ as a woman's voice, was unsettling. For a voice that sounded like it was searching for a baby, she didn't sound concerned.

And…the more Martin thought about it, the more he realized that she didn't even sound _human_.

* * *

"_Hector, we must speak."_

Brahm. It sounded like the hunter had gone to ground already. Hector allowed himself to relax into the soil while keeping his mind open. He double-checked Penny and Grace. Grace was asleep, while Penny was slowly getting ready for bed _"I hadn't heard from you all day, Brahm. Are you well?"_

"_I was on the hunt for the vampire last night. I found his hiding spot, but the sun had come out. But I slept close to his resting place. Hector…"_ the hunter hesitated for a moment._ "We are dealing with a monster, indeed."_

"_What has he done?"_

"_He is not alone in his killing spree."_

A cold chill overtook Hector's body. He thought of the three humans resting above him, most importantly his lifemate. _"So, Sevan is working with another vampire?"_

"…_No."_ Brahm paused again before he spoke. _"He has a __**vampiress**__ with him."_

Hector stiffened. _"A vampiress? Are you certain?"_

"_Yes. I couldn't get a good look at her, and I don't think Sevan realized she was there at first. Once he did though, he grabbed her and took off. I could've stopped them then, but I was…surprised. I haven't seen a vampiress in almost two hundred years."_

A vampiress. The Carpathian people have had to convert humans, jaguars, and other beings into Carpathians in their past. Thanks to their special traits and force of will, women and the rare occasion men could survive the conversion. A regular person though, without _any_ special abilities, would be driven mad. A vampiress was a poor woman who was either forced into conversion, or voluntarily gave herself up, but body and mind couldn't handle it and their bodies became corrupted as vampires.

"_Some neighbors had said they'd heard singing in the night, and they'd mistaken it for some crazy woman."_

That was what had been said of that one boy who'd been murdered. Hector had dismissed it as an illusion created by the vampire, but…

Hector felt sick to his stomach. Everything made sense now. He didn't doubt that Sevan had a hand in killing some of those children, but a vampiress got her greatest strength from the life blood of an innocent. These murders, while used to taunt them, were most likely carried out by Sevan's _companion_. _"So he is siccing this unfortunate soul on children. I knew it was too unusual for a vampire to do this himself."_

"_More than likely, though he stinks of innocent blood himself. I wouldn't be surprised if the both of them are participating in these killings."_

Hector locked his jaw. A vampiress wasn't so common to find anymore. Vampires used to use them as bait against unclaimed hunters, who would hesitate to kill a woman. In recent years vampires found more pleasure to seek out a woman with a special trait to use and torment, most likely knowing these types were the ones who most likely had lifemates. He'd remembered hearing about Destiny, and that her Carpathian change had occurred from vampire blood. Vampires probably also realized that it was the _special_ ones who drew lifemates, and expected to find their lifemate in one of these women.

Obviously, Sevan had no intention of seeking out a psychic woman for these purposes. His purpose seemed to be challenging them, and an unexplainable hatred for Penny. He would be a definite hassle to take care of, but the vampiress would be relatively easy to take of. These unfortunate women, while crazy and thirsting for children's blood, were very weak and couldn't even fight. It's what made the situation even more disgusting to Hector.

"_Hector, what's wrong?"_

Penny. Hector felt his body relax once more. She couldn't bring herself to fully trust him, and she was rebelling fiercely against the notion of turning. But anytime she felt his distress, she _always_ reached for him and tried to comfort him. That gave him a greater sense of peace, even with this dire situation. _"_Päläfertiil_, I'm afraid I have some bad news. Sevan isn't working alone."_

"_So he __**is**__ working with the Morrison Center?"_

"_Not exactly. He is keeping company with a vampiress."_

Penny was silent for a long moment. _"…A vampiress? I thought you said Carpathian women couldn't turn vampire."_

"_They can't, _sívamet_. A vampiress is a regular human woman who was converted, either on Carpathian blood or vampire blood, whose body and mind couldn't handle the conversion. If someone can't handle being changed, then they are driven mad and they turn evil."_

"…_And when exactly were you going to tell ME this?"_ Penny snapped. _"You've never once said that I could go crazy if you change me!"_

"_You are psychic, Penny. For whatever reason, individuals with psychic powers or special traits, like mage craft or shape-shifting, can handle the conversion. A regular human being cannot handle it."_

"_How would you know if this worked for me? How would you even know if I wouldn't go crazy?"_

"_Two reasons, Penny. One—most of the women coupled with Carpathian males right now were not born Carpathian. And two—you have me."_

"…_Really?" _she didn't sound so convinced.

"_Yes, really. There is no way I would ever allow you to lose yourself. And I would do everything I possibly could to lessen the pain of your conversion."_

Penny was sitting on the bed, her back pressed into the wall. For some reason, she just felt so incredibly uneasy. News of this vampiress suddenly made her sick on the inside. Was it fear of the unknown? But _everything_ she encountered in her life was part of the unknown. The Morrison Center, Sevan, the vampiress, Hector…_nothing_ was ever normal or _peaceful_.

"_My converting you doesn't mean you lose your peace," _Hector tried to soothe her_. "In fact, you'll most likely find the world to be so much safer. You'll be restricted to the night, yes, but you can read the minds of most humans, you can shape-shift into mist and any animal, and if necessary you can turn your body into a weapon. And I will always be there beside you."_

"…_I don't want to talk about this anymore."_ Penny closed her eyes. _"I don't want to __**think**__ about it anymore…"_

Hector didn't push her. Instead he sent her some of warmth and comfort as he addressed Brahm again. _"Please contact me with any further updates on this."_

"_Understood,"_ Brahm said. _"But we __**have**__ confirmed that the vampire and his…companion are here in this city. So we won't have to go far to search for them."_


	12. Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

"_Courage is the resistance to fear, mastery of fear—not absence of fear."_

_- Mark Twain_

* * *

"—_twinkle, little star. How I wonder what you are?"_

_She stiffened, but she couldn't move. Her body was frozen. She tried to open her eyes, but her lids seemed glued shut. She wanted to panic, but it seemed she didn't have the strength for it._

"_Up above the world so high…like a diamond in the sky…"_

_She never would've thought she would loathe that song as much as she did. It use to be her favorite nursery rhyme. But now it was a constant torment to her. Anytime she had a nightmare, she could hear echoes of that song in her head._

_It was what Sevan did to torment her…but she didn't know why. Why this song? Was it because she'd lost everything, and had no family other than Grace?_

_Cold hands suddenly pressed over her cheeks. By their position, she knew the keeper of the hands was above her head. That song had sounded so far away before, but now suddenly it was up close._

"_**Twinkle, twinkle, little star. How I wonder what you are?"**_

_The voice always sounded so mockingly playful before, but now…now it was __**frightening**__. It was guttural, and sounded so…evil._

_Realization dawned on her, and she tried to open her eyes. "Y-You…" she struggled very weakly where she lay, still unable to move. "Are you…" why was it so difficult to speak? Her voice sounded so muffled. "The vampiress…are you…"_

_A soft hum came from the voice above her…the keeper of the hands cradling her face. "…Are you seeking forgiveness?"_

_Her stomach squirmed violently. The guttural voice was now so soft, but…it was full of __**hate**__. "I-I don't…"_

_There were several short gasps that cut her off, before that voice continued. "What you have done…and…what you continue to do…and yet you delude yourself into being a victim?"_

"_Wha…" What the hell did that mean? Of course she was a victim! She'd been living on the run since she was fourteen! Both of her parents were murdered! All of these things certainly qualified her to be a victim! "Who…"_

_There was a hiss again, and she shivered. "I see you…and I know who you are…and I know…I know…"_

"…_What? What do I—"_

_She was finally able to open her eyes. But she couldn't focus on the face above her. Her eyes were transfixed in horror on the red eyes that blazed into her…that bore nothing but hate._

"_You are a BUTCHER," the vampiress hissed._

_And Penny screamed._

* * *

Abruptly, Penny snapped awake. The jolt of shock wrecking her body was enough to toss her straight from the bed. Gasping for air, she pressed her forehead into the side of the bed and closed her eyes, trying to calm down. Her heart was pounding so furiously…Grace would surely wake up wondering what was wrong!

"_Forgive me, Penny."_

Penny stilled, and raised her head. _"…Hector?"_

"_I wasn't paying attention until it was too late. I should've known that Sevan would send you torment in your sleep, especially since we've just discovered his…__**companion**__. I should've been on higher alert for you, _sívamet_."_

"_Hector, it was just a nightmare." _But Penny's hand shook as she brushed the hair out of her face. _"It's no big deal—"_

"_It was a nightmare induced by a vampire, _päläfertiil_. Furthermore, it has caused you great distress. You cannot dismiss such things as 'no big deal'."_

Penny couldn't argue that. Her head was hurting now, and oddly enough she felt exhausted, even though she'd just woken up. She forced herself to sit up. "I can't tell who the bigger threat is anymore," she murmured aloud, looking up towards the ceiling. "The Morrison Center or Sevan. Both of them have made my life a living hell, though the Morrison Center is less _subtle_ about it…but I don't understand!" she pressed a hand to her face and tilted her head down once more. "Why does Sevan hate me? I've been raking over my memories, and I honestly can't find _anything_ I've done to him! I've never even actually _met him_ face to face!"

"_You are a BUTCHER."_

"Why did she say that to me? I mean…" she dropped her hands into her lap. "I've killed people. They were monsters, but it _does_ make me sick to think about it at times. But it's not like I've ever tortured anyone! So why did she call me a butcher?"

"_She is mostly likely feeding on the guilt you _do _feel for killing them." _But Hector wasn't so certain. The words had been very deliberate, and not at all taunting. He too had examined Penny's memories, and he didn't see anything in her memories that would suggest she was a 'butcher' in any sense.

And the vampiress…in Penny's prior dreams she'd only seen the woman—which he was certain now _was_ the vampiress and not an illusion—from a distance. But now the woman was up close to Penny, and actually touched her. It felt like a blatant challenge.

But Hector didn't like that he couldn't see the woman's face. Penny had been terrified in the dream, and only found focus on the woman's evil eyes. When Hector tried to relive the nightmare, and focus and identify the woman's face, he was unable to do so. Why approach Penny, and yet shield your face? The vampiress—though it was most likely Sevan's influence—was challenging them, and yet hid herself even up close. What was the point of it?

Penny rested her forehead against the bed once more. "I'm tired of this…"

Hector cursed the daylight. He couldn't arise and come to his lifemate's aid. He wanted to hold her in his arms and give her warmth and comfort. All he could do was overpower her senses with his love. _"It will end for you soon, Penny. I swear to you that will put an end to this for you, and give you the peace you so desperately need. Whether you choose to be Carpathian or not, I will never leave your side."_

The comfort was enough. She still felt so sick on the inside, but to have someone looking out for her…Penny opened her eyes slowly. She didn't know Hector. They'd barely met and yet he'd inserted himself directly into her life. It was irritating, but having him with her she found to be…_necessary_.

"_That is because we're meant to be together, _sívamet_,"_ Hector told her plainly. _"We were created for each other. We cannot live without each other. That is just the way we are as lifemates."_

Penny took a deep breath and let it out shortly. "Thank you," she said aloud. "I'd probably be dead right now if it weren't for you, Hector." She snorted. "Actually, I _would_ be dead. I'd probably still be pinned inside my car."

"_Do not think of such thing, Penny. I will get you through this. And when this is over, when Sevan and Greene and all of these monsters are dead, I will take Grace and you to a safe place where you will get much needed relaxation."_

"That sounds nice, but I don't think such a thing is possible." The words were out of Penny's mouth before she could stop herself. It wasn't the pessimism that startled her, but her own disappointment that Hector's promise may not come true. It seemed natural now to imagine Hector as being part of her life. He took such good care of her, and he also looked out for Grace. Was this because they were "lifemates" as he'd put it?

"_I will never leave your side, _sívamet. _It is my duty—no, it is my reason for living—that I love and take care of you. Grace is also under my care and I will watch over her as I do you. You two are my family, and I won't allow anything to happen to either one of you."_

The intimacy of his words made her uncomfortable, but at the same time they stirred warmth inside her heart. He wasn't in the room with her, but all Hector had to do was speak to her and everything in her world turned bright. And her world was so dark… "Hector…"

There was a sudden knock at the door. "Penny?"

Penny started, and jumped to her feet. She rushed to the door and swung it open. "I-Is something wrong, Gracie? Did you have a nightmare?"

"No," Grace said. "But I woke up and I heard you talking in here so I knew you were awake too." She peered into the room behind Penny. "But Hector isn't in here."

"A-Ah…" Penny flushed with embarrassment at having her sister catch her speaking to Hector aloud. "I am talking to him, but he's…elsewhere."

Grace shrugged. "Okay. But if you have telepathic links then why speak out loud? I think it would be awkward to talk out loud to someone speaking in my head."

"_She has a point," _Hector said amusedly.

"_Shut up."_ Penny put enough sting in those words as she forced a smile at Grace. "I'm sorry if I make you feel awkward, Grace—"

"You don't," Grace said. "It just seems more logical that way."

Penny sighed, and rubbed a hand over her face. "I'm sorry I woke you, sweetie. You must still be tired, so why don't you go back to bed?"

"I'm not tired. It's already noon."

Noon. It was the middle of the day and yet Penny spoke to Grace like it was the middle of the night. It was still something Penny couldn't get use to yet. "Still, you were up pretty late last night."

Grace shrugged. "But I feel fine. Can I go outside and play?"

"What?" Penny gasped. She knelt down and grabbed Grace's shoulders. "Why do you want to go outside?"

"Because I've been in this house for almost a week," Grace said bluntly. There was no anger or vindictiveness in her words, just a bland statement of the obvious. "And I haven't seen sunlight really since we drove off that cliff."

Penny groaned. "Gracie, let's not remember such unpleasant things—"

"So let's make happier memories by playing in a park," Grace said.

"_Penny—"_ Hector said warningly.

"_I know."_ Penny took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Gracie." She slowly embraced her sister. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. I know you want to be like a normal child and do normal things. There's nothing I want than for you to be happy. But…it's just not safe for us right now. The bad people are still hunting us. If we go out in the open we'll be easy targets. We're very close to stopping the bad people though, so I promise afterwards that—"

"The vampire is asleep," Grace pointed out. "Vampires can't come out when the sun is up. And if we go to a place with a lot of people, those other bad guys wouldn't dare hurt us." Grace paused before she continued. "I'm not trying to be difficult. I would just like to go outside and play in a park. I want to spend time with you, Penny. Can't I do that?"

"_Penny, it is too dangerous," _Hector said. _"The Morrison Center won't hesitate to try and kill you out in the open, even in a heavily populated area. One time they opened fire on a nightclub to kill the members of the Dark Troubadours. They even shot an innocent human up in Canada during a photo shoot. They don't mind these tactics because they can easily cover their tracks."_

Penny held onto Grace, closing her eyes and concentrating on the child's steady heartbeat for added comfort. She knew Hector was right, but…_ "Hector, didn't you say that you severely disabled the Morrison Center's influence here?"_

"_Penny—"_

"_And Grace is right about Sevan. He can't rise up at this time to attack us and neither can the vampiress."_

"_Penny, you can't take this risk!"_

"_Listen to your lifemate."_ Penny felt Brahm's voice rumble through Hector's mind and she shivered. _"Do not put yourself unnecessarily at risk, or the child. You cannot predict the actions of a vampire, or crazed humans."_

Grace shivered suddenly in her arms, and Penny leaned back. "What's wrong?"

Grace shook her head. "It's nothing. I must be restless from being in here too long."

"_Brahm, do not tell my lifemate what to do,"_ Hector said tersely.

"_You are ready to give in to her request," _Brahm pointed out. _"And it's too risky. Her life will be in danger, and so will the _kislány's_. We are at our weakest at this time of day, and if they are attacked we will not be able to help them."_

"_I understand that," _Hector insisted.

"_Do you?"_

Hector tensed. _"There is no need for you to speak to me this way, Brahm. Please don't challenge me like this."_

There was a long pause from Brahm, and Hector was almost afraid the other hunter cut him off. _"I apologize. I have too much on my mind at the moment. It was probably not wise of me to go from a monstrous battle against a master vampire straight away to assisting you like this. I haven't had proper time to rest."_

"_I fully appreciate your help, Brahm. You've been incredibly helpful to me, and I trust you. I know my words do not mean much, but you must hang onto your faith."_

"_I am. Dead or alive, I will find out what's happened to Olivia. I will pray with all my heart she is alive, but if she is not I will at least have closure on that…if nothing else."_

"_Hector."_

"_What is it?"_ Hector asked, focusing once more on his lifemate.

"_Grace and I have spoken, and I decided I agree with her. We want to go to a park."_

Hector tensed, and it was with difficulty that he not get angry. _"Penny—"_

"_I understand the danger, Hector. But it's just to a park. Would the Morrison Center shoot up a park that had children playing in it?"_

"_Penny, if something happens we can't rise to help you!"_

"_That's fine. I'll take one of my guns with me."_

Hector groaned in fury. _"_Sívamet_, for someone who is so cautious why do you insist on doing something so dangerous?"_

"_Because it's good for Grace."_

"_Penny—"_

"_Grace really wants to do this, Hector. She's hardly ever asked anything of me before. Maybe…"_ Penny tensed before she continued. _"Maybe she feels nothing is wrong? If there was danger, she would tell me. She wouldn't put herself in danger, and not me. She just wants to play in the sun in a park like a child would. Please Hector, don't fight me on this. We'll be very careful."_

She was going to go, one way or the other. Hector knew he could put them both to sleep, but then Penny would resent him for it. He'd already come so far with her, and he'd nearly ruined things between them when he took her blood a second time. He couldn't push his luck with this. _"Just…be careful."_

"_Hector—"_ Brahm warned.

"_I will send out cloud cover so that anything happens, it will induce a rainstorm and I will be able to rise to help you. But don't go too far from the safe house, please."_

Penny could feel the reluctance in his words, but he wasn't going to stop her! _"Thank you so much, Hector!"_ she grabbed Grace's hands as she stood. "Go get ready, Gracie!"

Grace smiled blithely at her. "I'm glad to hear it."

"_Hector, you're letting your woman lead you around unnecessarily,"_ Brahm reprimanded. _"You know the risks and yet you do this? Because you're afraid she'll give you the cold shoulder? What sort of warrior are you?"_

Hector sighed shortly. _"I invite you to wait and see how your lifemate will impact your life, Brahm. I trust that you might find yourself led around by her."_

"…_Somehow, I doubt it."_

Hector snorted to himself. He had seen many proud warriors fall victim to the will of their lifemates, and he knew he was now one such fool. He just hoped that he didn't regret this decision. _"Just be careful, _päläfertiil_."_

"_It's fine," _Penny said confidently. She shrugged her gun holster over her shoulders. _"Martin will be with us too, so it's not like we'll be alone."_

Hector tensed once more. _"I don't want you around that human, Penny."_

"_Oh, for God's sake—"_

"_I do not say this as a jealous man. We do not know what's wrong with him yet, Penny. Something unnatural has caused him to lose control of his telepathy. Until we find out what it is, it's not wise to go to someplace unknown with him."_

"_Hector."_ Penny kept her tone firm. _"It's okay. I'd thought too that Martin had ulterior motives, but I don't think this way anymore. Grace trusts him, and he's been very kind and helpful to us. Maybe if I be nice to him he'll reveal something to me as to why his powers have gone haywire?"_

"_It might be something outside of his control. He might not know what's causing it."_

"_But he __**might**__ know. And I'd like to chance that first before assuming the worst of him again."_

Hector sighed shortly. _"I feel that you will what you want regardless. Be only thankful that I am in the ground right now, _sívamet_. When I arise I will be giving you a much-needed talking to."_

Penny stood still in the room for a moment. Suddenly, she burst out with hysterical laughter. _"Are you scolding me like a child? What will you do, spank me?"_

Hector couldn't find a retort. The sound of her laughter rippled through his mind and sent shivers down his back. She was laughing. Penny was laughing. She didn't laugh very often, and only around Grace. But the sound was so genuine and _beautiful_…it took his breath away.

Penny took his lack of response as acceptance and holstered her handgun. She pulled a jacket on, both to cover the gun and to shield her skin from the sun. She knew she would still be sensitive to its light. She propped a pair of sunglasses on her head as she left the room.

And nearly walked into Grace. "O-Oh, Gracie!"

"You laughed," her sister pointed out matter-of-factly.

Penny smiled and tucked Grace's hair behind her ears. "Sure I did. What about it?"

"You hardly ever laugh. And when you do, you still sound sad." Grace paused before she spoke once more. "You didn't sound sad now."

Penny was still very uncomfortable by Grace's untactful words. "I sound sad when I laugh?"

"Because you're always looking out for me, you can't relax," Grace said. "But just now, you laughed for real. And I know that Hector made you laugh."

"Grace…" Penny pulled her sister into a tight hug. "I laugh for real around you too. Don't ever think otherwise. You're my precious sister and I love you so much. There's nobody in this world I love more than you."

"What about Hector?" Grace asked sagely. Still, there was no jealousy or anger in her words, just blunt curiosity.

"Let's go to the park," Penny said instead of answering. _"Don't you DARE laugh,"_ she snapped at Hector.

"_Wouldn't dream of it."_

* * *

The park Grace sought after was ten minutes away on foot. Martin was more than happy to come with them, though Penny noted he hadn't slept the night before. She felt Hector's irritation that he suffered from insomnia like this, and made no real effort to _try_ and sleep. Martin only slept if he was forced to, and even then he seemed tired. But surprisingly alert. Before they left though, Penny forced him to holster a gun. When she couldn't find the gun she had given him, she forced Martin to dig it up from the couch and wear it.

Grace calmly walked between them. After a few blocks she casually reached up and took both of their hands. The gesture felt sweet to Penny, but when she saw the three of them linked like a chain it embarrassed her greatly. They looked like a happy family going on an outing.

_But we look less suspicious this way_. Penny didn't know if this was what Grace was looking to appear as, or if she just wanted to hold both of their hands. Martin certainly looked uncomfortable by it, and she could feel Hector's annoyance with this public display.

Even with sunglasses, the sun hurt Penny's eyes terribly. She was relieved to see overcast clouds start to form in the sky; Hector's security measure in case danger lurked. Even if she was giving in to Grace's wish, she didn't intend to be outside for very long.

Once they reached the park, Grace released their hands and took off running. Penny instinctively wanted to shout at her to stop, but she clenched her teeth. Other families were about playing and having picnics, and Grace didn't draw any attention. The normalcy all around Penny was surprisingly refreshing. The happiness and carefree atmosphere was something she had longed for.

"_And you will have it once Sevan and Greene are taken care of,"_ Hector reassured her.

"Wow," Martin said, taking a seat at a park bench. Penny sat down beside him. "After being in that house all that time, I really appreciate my environment more."

"Do you miss it?" Penny asked. "The normalcy?"

Martin laughed. "Normalcy? Even without all this craziness, my life was work, work, work. I can't remember the last time I had a day off."

"Hmm…" Penny kept her eyes on Grace. The child had a sketch pad under her arm. A few feet away she calmly sat down on an undisturbed patch of grass and began drawing. Penny noticed that even though the ground looked fresh there, none of the other families had stretched out their games or picnic blankets there.

"_This park is where Brahm is resting,"_ Hector clarified. _"That area is where he's sleeping, and he has naturally put up a shield so that he will not be disturbed."_

Penny blinked in confusion at Grace, who was happily drawing away. _"Wait a minute. If a shield is up that keeps even normal people away, how come it isn't affecting Grace? Does she just not notice it, or is Brahm making exception to us?"_

"_Because he agreed to help me, that includes protecting you two. It is likely that the shield is making exception to her, as you said."_ Hector didn't have a clear answer, because Brahm had submerged himself in his sleep.

"This is very nice," Martin said after a long moment.

"Huh?" Penny gaped at him. "Don't you know our situation? We're being hunted! And it's my fault you're in this mess!"

"I wouldn't say that. As I said before, because I can't control my powers I might already be a target." Martin shrugged. "And even if it was your fault, I don't care."

Penny rubbed at her forehead. "I don't understand you. You've almost died a few times, but it hasn't fazed you. You're learning about mystical things that don't fit into a normal human life. And none of this fazes you? Not at all? You're perfectly happy going with the flow?"

Again, Martin only shrugged. "What's the use of getting upset? Life is too short to worry over every little thing. And it's kind of a relief to me to know that supernatural things do exist. Thinking of them along the lines of "fantasy" and "impossible" makes the world so boring. And when I think of my own powers, it makes me feel better that I'm not alone."

"Life may be too short," Penny said quietly. "But when you're hunted, you could die at any moment."

I…have to agree with you there," Martin said quietly. "There's nothing crueler in life than selfishly pursuing someone for the express purpose of killing them. What sort of life is that? To live on death and bloodlust, when there's greater pleasures that exists."

He paused and shifted uncomfortably. "Maybe…I get angrier when people do nothing with their lives, and they have too much ability to do more. Because life is so unpredictable, it's important to utilize yourself to your greatest ability, rather than sitting around and letting it all slip away. I wouldn't want people to utilize themselves by murdering others, but it's a waste to let yourself waste away."

Penny stilled. Martin's words seemed to come out of nowhere. She felt like he was telling her something important, but she didn't understand. What did he mean? "I've been hunted for twelve years. Four years of which I was on the run with my parents. Eight of those years with Grace. Because of the Morrison Center, I've lost so much of my life that I can never get back. I graduated from high school, but I don't have a physical diploma. I have _nothing_ to my own name because I've spent this whole time carving my life through different identities. I've not been able to utilize anything of myself other than to run and hide.

"But…" her hands curled into fists in her lap. "I've have hope now, you know? Hector tells me that he will help end everything for me, and I believe him. And to be honest, if at the end of this I end up doing nothing for myself other than sitting around, I think I could still be happy. If I could give Grace much needed normalcy and a good life, allow her to grow as her own person…then everything I suffered is worth it." She looked at Martin levelly. "I'm still here because I want to survive, and most of all I want to _live_. And not in the sense of just existing here."

Martin was silent for a long moment before he spoke. "You sound like you've really had a hard lie. I won't give you sympathetic words because words are wasted without action. But…if you guys need help, I'll continue to help you any which way I can."

Penny gaped at him for a moment. "W-Why would you want to help me? I'm being hunted by the Morrison Center and a vam—" she cut herself off before she said too much. "I've told you you're in danger because of me. So why would you feel obligated to help me?"

Martin shrugged once more. "What else can I do?"

Penny turned away. She made a mistake. Speaking to Martin hadn't been a good idea. He gave off a friendly aura, but something seemed to strange about him. He was honest, but not entirely so. And she hadn't gotten any closer to finding out _why_ his powers were acting up.

"I'm going to get a drink of water," she announced suddenly, seeing a park drinking fountain a few feet away. "I'll be right back."

"Okay," Martin said easily enough. "Grace and I will both be here."

Penny got up from the bench and hurried over to the fountain. She kept looking at Grace out of the corner of her eye. _"Did you gage anything from his words, Hector?"_

"…_No,"_ Hector said reluctantly. _"However, he seems to have a sort of fatalistic mentality. At least, when it comes to himself."_

"_You've read his mind?"_ Penny dipped down to get a drink of water. The taste of water made her stomach turn, but she forced herself to drink it.

"_His mind is full of chaos. I do not want to venture too far into it yet. But it sounds like he thinks he's not going to live through this. Almost as if he expects to sacrifice himself to help us."_

Penny scrubbed at her mouth as she stood up. _"Why would he think that?"_

"_I do not know."_

It was then that a nearby payphone rang. Penny cried out in alarm and gaped at it. It was just a simple red payphone with a plexi-glass cover right in front of the sidewalk. People nearby seemed confused and shocked that a payphone was ringing, but Penny swallowed thickly. She knew the phone was for her. _"Should I answer it?"_

"_Yes,"_ Hector said reluctantly. _"I do not sense danger in the area, and it's still too early for Sevan or the vampiress to rise. This is undoubtedly someone from the Morrison Center. I want to hear their voice so I can identify them later."_

"_All right."_ Penny still hesitated before she approached the phone. It was consistently ringing over and over again. Whoever was on the other line definitely wanted to talk. Overhead, a rumble of thunder ripped through the darkening clouds.

Penny absently yanked her hood over her head as she reached out a shaking hand to take the phone. She kept her voice steady as she spoke into the receiver. "Hello?"

"_So this is the voice of the person who killed my brother."_ The voice on the other end was surprisingly deep, and full of venom.

Penny sucked in a deep breath, and her hand formed a fist around the phone. "Ulysses Greene…"

* * *

Grace looked over her shoulder at Penny. Her sister was several feet away talking on a pay phone. Why was she on a pay phone? It seemed very odd. And she didn't like the erratic pounding of Penny's heart.

She looked to her left and saw Martin at the bench. The man varied between watching Penny and walked Grace. Even though Penny was distracted, Grace got to her feet and started towards Martin. For a brief moment she felt a tug on her back, but it quickly disappeared and she brushed the feeling off. Once Martin saw her approaching, he kept his focus on her. "Hello, Grace. Are you having fun?"

Grace nodded, but she didn't smile. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Sure, what is it?"

"Why are you hiding?"

Martin looked startled by her question. "I-I'm sorry, but I don't know what you mean."

"You haven't told them anything," Grace said.

Martin began to look increasingly uncomfortable. "I honestly don't know what you me—"

"I know."

Martin looked at her again. His hand reached up and idly rubbed at his head. "…What?"

"I _know_," Grace said. She didn't bother keeping the irritation from her tone. "So don't pretend around me."

"Ah…" Martin winced, and looked like he was in pain. "How…How did you know?"

"I suspected something from the beginning," Grace said. "When I heard your heart. After being around you longer I then knew it."

Martin self-consciously looked at Penny before looking back at Grace. "Have you told Penny or Hector?"

Grace shook her head. "I figured you would, but you haven't."

"Grace, don't tell them."

"What?" Grace couldn't hide the shock that shook her small body. She gaped at Martin. "What do you mean don't tell them?"

"Don't tell them about me," Martin said. There was desperation in his tone. "The fact that_ I _know is enough. They don't need to know."

"But they can help you," Grace said. "Penny broke her ribs and injured her head, but after Hector saved her she was completely fine. Hector can help you the same way."

But Martin shook his head. "I don't have broken ribs, Grace. My…case is more complicated than that."

"But they can help you—"

"They probably can't help me, Grace, and I would rather they not try and risk injury to themselves." He sighed sadly. "It's all right, really. I just need for you to keep quiet about it."

Grace swallowed very slowly before she spoke. "I don't keep secrets from Penny. And neither should you."

"I'll never ask anything of you again," Martin pleaded. "Just _don't_ tell them about this, okay? This is my business, and I'm handling it my own way. They surely won't ask you about this, okay? Just don't bring it up to them."

Grace hugged her sketchbook to her chest. She could tell by Martin's heartbeat that she upset him greatly, but…but what could she do? Nobody else was saying anything, not even Martin.

But he was an adult, and she couldn't change his mind. At least not right at that moment.

"…All right," she said reluctantly. "I won't—"

She broke off when Penny's heart rate accelerated violently. "Penny?" she cried out, running towards her sister. Penny was still standing at the payphone.

"Wai—Grace! _Grace_!" Martin shouted, jumping up and running after her.

* * *

"Your brother killed my parents," Penny spat savagely. "So what do you expect? An apology from me for killing him in _self-defense_?"

Ulysses Greene chuckled humorlessly on the other line. _"I've given up long ago any semblance of remorse from you, you slimy bitch. You stand there in that dinky little park accusing me of atrocities, and yet you've murdered quite a few people yourself. You've aligned yourself with __**vampires**__."_ He spat the word out like it was a swear word. _"And yet stand in judgment of me? Sherman and I built our lives around saving the world, and yet here you are, the foul creature that you are, acting like you're so much better than me. You're __**bad**__ for humans, Penny, and it's my duty to stop you. The fact you murdered my brother in cold blood is just another factor in it."_

"What are you going to do?" Penny snapped. "I'm standing in a park with at least two dozen people around! Most of them are kids! Are you going to kill us all?"

"…_Not quite."_

On the plexi-glass beside Penny's head, a red laser-dot abruptly appeared. Penny gasped aloud when she saw it, and spun around.

"_Face the phone, Penny. None of this poking-around with your eyes, or I'll shoot the nearest child."_

Penny slowly turned back around to face the phone. _"Don't think I don't know your tactics. I know how you whores are used by the bloodsuckers. They take control of your bodies and with a simple look you can kill us. And that's what you intended to do to me, wasn't it?"_

"I-I…" Penny closed her eyes and tried to remain calm. "I didn't—"

"_Don't lie to me,"_ Greene snapped on the other line._ "You think you can simply go around and kill us and do whatever you want, don't you? You've made my life a living hell for the past decade, and you continue to cause me problems. I'm going to make sure you pay for it."_

"You RUINED ME!" Penny hollered into the phone, startling a few people nearby. "You murdered my parents and destroyed my childhood! I sleep with guns underneath my pillow and I've been living _in fear_! How dare you accuse _me_ of ruining **your life**, you bastard! If all of you had just left me alone—left my father alone and left my mother alone—then maybe your damned brother would still be alive! Ever think of _that_?"

A flick of air brushed past her ear, and the plexi-glass exploded next to her head. Penny instinctively dropped to her knees, and people cried out in alarm. A gunshot didn't ring through the air, but glass didn't just explode on its own. Caught up in the panic, people began to scatter.

Penny gasped, and hugged her hand to her chest, even as she pulled out her pistol. When the bullet shattered the glass, she shielded her face with her hand, which had been cut up by the spray. _"I'm sorry! I'm sorry, Hector!"_

"_Don't apologize, just get Grace!" _Hector commanded. _"Brahm is about to rise as well! I'm coming!"_

To further add to the panic, rain began to pelt down mercilessly from the sky. Penny got back to her feet and turned. Grace and Martin were running up to her.

"Penny!" Grace shouted, waving her sketchbook. "Are you okay?"

Before Penny could respond, she saw a red flicker behind Grace. It was the light from the sniper gun! He was aiming at _Grace_!

"Grace, _get down_!" Penny shouted. She lunged at her sister and tackled her to the mud, raising her injured hand as though to shield them. She had her gun out, but she didn't know where the shooter was. Firing it wildly would be dangerous.

Penny felt another rush of air, and knew the sniper had fired a second shot. Pain raced quickly up her arm as the bullet pierced her palm and burst out of the back of her hand. Even as shock settled in over her body, Penny was terrified that the bullet would hit someone else.

"A _sniper_?" Martin shouted. He awkwardly pulled out his gun. "Where is he?"

"Penny! Penny!" Grace clutched at her sister. "Are you hurt? Were you hit?"

Penny couldn't form words. She dropped her gun as her injured hand fell to her side. She crushed Grace up against her chest. More than anything she didn't want her sister to see her injury.

Strong arms grabbed her from behind, and both sisters were lifted off their feet. "We're going back! Come on, human!"

Martin only laughed when he saw Hector. "You have no idea how glad I am to see you!"

"_I'll get the shooter!"_ Brahm told Hector. _"Just get your woman and the child out of here!"_ several feet away Brahm burst from the earth. He didn't approach them and immediately took flight in the direction of the sniper.

"Penny, you were shot!" Grace cried out. Even though she was a calm child there was no hiding the horror in her voice. "You were shot!"

"I-I'm fine," Penny sputtered, speaking for once to calm her. "I'll be okay…"

"We're going back," Hector said. He handed Grace to Martin. "Hang onto me, human, and don't drop her."

"R-Right." Martin grabbed hold of Hector's sleeve as the hunter hoisted Penny into his arms and took off into the sky back towards the safe house.

"_You were right."_ Penny held her bleeding hand to her chest once more. _"You were right and I was wrong. I put my sister at risk. I'm so sorry…"_

"_I'm just as much to blame for this, because I let you go."_ Hector held onto her tighter. _"But…we've confirmed that the new Greene is here. And, I've confirmed a weakness."_

"_Weakness?"_

"_He acted on his emotions when the shooting started. This means, if provoked, he will be rash with decisions when the going gets tough. This will make him easy to take care of in the long run. Then we can focus our energy on Sevan and the vampiress."_

"_Okay…"_ Penny leaned her head into his chest. _"Thank you again, Hector."_

"_I am your lifemate, Penny. This is what I'm meant to do."_


	13. Chapter Eleven

My laptop crash…and I had to perform a full system restore on my laptop. I really hate computers. _Especially_ since I had to rewrite this chapter. But I like it better after the rewrite, and I hope you guys like it too.

Chapter Eleven

"_I'd give my heart, I'd give my soul. I'd turn it back, it's my fault. Your destiny is forlorn. Have to live until it's undone."_

_**Jillian (I'd Give My Heart)**__ by Within Temptation_

* * *

"_Kidü, päläfertiil_."

All at once sleep fled Penny's body and she opened her eyes. Hector's face loomed inches from her own. He raised a hand and gently caressed her cheek. "How are you feeling?"

"Fine…I think." Penny remembered what happened. Hector brought them home and put powerful shields on their safe house, but was unfortunately at his strength's end. It had still be the middle of the afternoon, though he called down a monstrous thunderstorm to shield both himself and Brahm to save them. He had needed to get back to ground as soon as possible, and Penny didn't bother fighting him when he insisted on putting the sleep compulsion on all of them.

"How are _you_ feeling?" she asked. Hector's face was too close to hers, and his dark eyes watched her heatedly. "When we got back, you seemed really sick…"

"I'm fully rested now," Hector said. Despite the situation, his tone was pleasant. "Are you okay?"

"Of course I am. I…" Penny trailed off as she raised her hand to brush her hair out of her face. Her right hand was still bandaged. Once awareness came to her fully, her hand started to ache.

Hector saw her looking at her still injured hand and took it into his own. "I apologize for this. After we came back here I had so little strength left and I forgot to heal your injuries. I should've made this my top priority."

"You rescued us from a great mess with the Morrison Center," Penny said. "This little injury isn't _nearly_ as bad as my car accident."

"As lifemates, I'm supposed to put your needs above everything else. Especially when you are injured."

"But you saved us," Penny insisted. "Both Brahm and you. We…" she stilled suddenly. "Is Brahm okay?"

"He had to go to ground immediately as well," Hector said. "He found the sniper and disposed of them, but he didn't find Greene."

"_Sniper_? But I thought Greene was the one shooting at us!"

"He was undoubtedly with the actual shooter, but it was someone else pulling the trigger."

Just knowing that made Penny even more furious. "What is _wrong_ with these people? They opened fire on a park full of innocent people! They tried to shoot me! Shoot _Grace_! And yet they somehow think they're noble and protecting everyone! They…" she pressed a hand to her face. "I shouldn't be surprised by any of this. They tortured my own mother when she was pregnant with Grace. Why should _this_ shock me?"

"It shocks you because you're a good person, _sívamet_."

Penny was taken aback by the simplicity of his compliment, and how it seemed to naturally flow out of him. "I wouldn't necessary call myself a good person, Hector. Greene wouldn't have started shooting at me if I hadn't provoked him. And Gracie's life is the way it is now because of me…"

Hector stared at her for a moment in silence. Penny was confused by the expression on his face. He looked…_irritated_. Feeling uncomfortable she reached for his mind, and she felt his anger. She tried to pull herself away, but Hector felt her presence in his mind, and held her there.

"How," Hector said slowly, grabbing her shoulders. "Can you say that you're not a good person? How can you make such an assessment of yourself _seriously_? Of _course_ you're a good person! Don't you _ever_ believe otherwise, Penny! Your life has been in total turmoil because of the mistakes of your parents, but you've never blamed them for your problems! Grace's birth may have come from tragic circumstances, but you've protected her and have given her as much of a stable childhood as you could! Most _parents_ can't rear children with personalities as balanced as Grace's!"

"I…"

"You are my lifemate," Hector insisted. "You restored me when no one else could. _That alone_ makes you a good person. I don't _ever_ want to hear you say these words again. Do you understand me?"

"A-All right." Penny was shaken by the conviction in Hector's voice. She wasn't so sure of her goodness, but Hector believed wholeheartedly in it. It was so strange, and it made her uncomfortable. She had to keep reminding herself that she didn't know Hector, and hadn't known him for very long, because she could _feel_ their deeper tie together. His heartbeat was like a soft echo in her mind, and she didn't feel alone because she always felt him with her, even when they weren't in the same room together.

Hector cupped her face in his hands. "You're not a bad person, _päläfertiil_, and Grace would be upset with you if she heard you speak this way. If you are uncertain of how Grace feels about you, then all you need to do is ask her."

Penny looked to her right. Grace was curled up beside her on the bed. Her face was always so calm and serene in sleep, as it was at any other time of day. Penny remembered that Grace had lost her sage like composure when she had been shot in the hand. Had she been traumatized by that experience?

Another thought entered Penny's mind, and she quickly looked at Hector. "You—"

"Her memories are intact," Hector reassured her. "I promised you I would not erase her memories without your permission."

"Ah…" Penny looked at Grace again. She leaned across the bed to kiss her sister on the forehead before she looked at Hector again. "I'm sorry for jumping to conclusions."

"You don't need to apologize," Hector said. "For most of your life the only person you could trust was Grace. You are slowly coming to trust me, _sívamet_, but you have come further than when we first met."

Penny realized he was speaking the truth. Her body and soul instinctively trusted him, but she had constantly tried to flee him before. Now…now she was comfortable being around him, and she felt uneasy when he wasn't near. Only a few weeks had gone by since they'd initially met, and yet Hector as much part of her life as if he'd always been there.

"But speaking of erasing things," Hector said, taking her injured hand in both of his. "I must take care of your injuries."

"W-Wait!" Penny sputtered, looking at Grace once more. "Not in front of her!"

"She is asleep, _päläfertiil_, and won't wake up until I tell her too." Hector began to carefully remove the bandages from Penny's hand. "I don't want to put this off any longer. You want your cuts and your bullet wound to be properly healed, don't you?"

Penny swallowed thickly, knowing what he was going to do. His saliva could heal, and the quickest way to heal injuries was through such intimate contact. "All right…but make it quick!" she snapped.

Hector smiled at her. "I will try."

Penny bit back a retort as he finished taking off her bandages. The bullet hole in the center of her hand was hideous. She was too frightened to check if she could see _through_ the wound. The other cuts on her hand, caused by plexi-glass, were rather minor though her skin was also bruising. Hector gently raised her hand, and pressed a kiss over the hole across her palm.

Then…his mouth opened and he gently licked the wound.

Penny's breath hitched at the unexpected squirming sensation in her abdomen. "Wait—"

"Shh…" his breath felt unexpectedly cool against her fingers, and her heart began to pound. "Just relax _päläfertiil_. I'm healing your hand."

His tongue moved slowly across her skin, bathing every inch of her palm to make sure the bullet wound was completely healed on that side. He turned her hand over to heal the hole on the back, and Penny could see her palm. All traces of her gunshot injury on that side were gone.

Hector had his eyes closed while he set about his task, as if he was fully immersed in it. He turned her hand back over and stretched out her injured fingers, and Penny saw that the back of her hand was fully healed.

_But of course it is,_ she reasoned. _He healed my car accident injuries too, so I shouldn't be surprised._

It wasn't the healing that was surprising her, but the _process _of it, and its effects on her body. She couldn't steady her heartbeat, and she was breaking out in a sweat. A warm, tingly sensation settled over her being and it made her more uncomfortable. It made her…want _more_.

Hector worked on each finger individually, running his tongue up and down each digit meticulously. Her ring finger was her most injured finger, with two long, ugly scratches up both sides that winded around the finger. Penny almost dreaded the amount of time Hector would take just to lick this finger.

So…she was taken completely off-guard when Hector kissed the tip of that finger and then swallowed it into his mouth.

Penny gasped again, and tried to pull her hand away. "Hector—"

He began sucking on her finger. An involuntary groan rumbled from her throat as the rhythmic squeezing of his mouth around her injured finger. Heat radiated from her hand and shot straight through her. She closed her eyes and pressed a hand over her mouth to prevent anymore noises from escaping.

"_Hector."_ It was difficult to focus her mind on speaking to him. _"Please stop this. Don't do this in front of Grace. I don't care that she's asleep, just…"_

"…_Understood."_ Hector reluctantly released her now healed finger and quickly finished with healing the rest of her hand.

Penny's face felt hot, and she struggled to catch her breath. She didn't like this feeling of need inside her. When Hector finally set her hand down, the feeling didn't fade like she wanted, but only increased in intensity. She hugged her hand to her chest and closed her eyes. It embarrassed her that Hector could make her unravel so effortlessly. She had never been interested in sex, and she _certainly_ never trusted anyone enough to get that close to her!

"_That makes me feel incredibly relieved,"_ Hector said dryly.

Penny glared at him. "Can't you control yourself once and a while? To act like this in front of a child—"

"_Sívamet_." Hector leaned forward so that he was just a breath away from Penny's face. "I _cannot_ control myself when it is you."

Penny quickly looked away. "Wake my sister up, please!"

Hector feigned disappointment, and smiled. "As you wish." He reached out and stroked a finger gently against Grace's temple. "_Kidü_, _Sisar_."

Grace's eyes fluttered open. She blinked in confusion as she slowly sat up. "What…"

She saw Penny sitting beside her and froze. "Penny!" her face was still calm, but her voice was full of worry as she grabbed Penny's arm. "Are you hurt? You were shot, weren't you?"

"Take a look, Gracie," Penny said, showing Grace her now healed hand. "I'm all better now."

Grace looked at her hand closely for any signs of her injuries. After a moment she nodded and looked at Hector. "Thank you."

Penny blinked. "How did you know Hector healed me?"

"He did it before," Grace pointed out. "And I don't think that other guy would heal you."

"If by 'other guy' you mean Brahm," Hector said amusingly. "Then you are quite correct, child. As a Carpathian, it is my duty to fulfill Penny's needs first and foremost, so that—"

"I'm hungry," Penny interrupted hastily, shoving aside the covers. "Who wants to eat?"

"I do!" Grace chimed in, though she smiled knowingly at Hector as she followed Penny out of the room.

Hector wasn't upset. He only smiled as he rose from the bed. _I'm close. I'm much closer to her than I was before…_

* * *

Penny stared at the couch with a raised eyebrow. She felt Hector come up beside her and she gave him a dirty look. "Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course," Hector said, looking down at the couch with her.

"Why does he always look like this?" she motioned to Martin, who was slumped on the couch fast asleep. "I mean, we can't help it if he doesn't go to sleep, but does he _always _need to be sleeping on the couch? There's a couple of extra bedroom upstairs, aren't there?"

Hector gave her a hard look before he motioned to Martin. "_Kidü_."

Martin snapped awake, and sat up in confusion. "W-What happened? Did we evade them?"

"The sniper firing at you all was killed," Hector said. "But Greene is still at large."

"I-I see…" Martin rubbed at his head as he looked at Penny. "How's your hand, Penny?"

"Healed," Penny said, showing him her hand.

Martin blinked very slowly, and his mouth hung open in astonishment. "That's incredible! What healing capabilities!"

"It's really nothing," Hector said stiffly, pulling Penny with him to sit on another couch. "I'm capable of performing what many would call 'medical miracles'."

"Really? Then—" Martin suddenly stopped himself and looked a little uncomfortable. Hector frowned at his reaction, and reached for his mind. But he found Martin's usual chaos and quickly pulled away.

"It's really incredible," Martin said finally. "I believe you guys are quite capable of taking care of the Morrison Center."

"We always have been," Hector said.

A small bag hit Martin on the arm. He started, and looked down to see a bag of celery sticks.

"Eat," Grace said, munching on baby carrots as she handed Penny her own bag of carrots. "You have to be hungry now."

"I…" Martin hesitated, but then saw how they were all looking at him. "Thank you." He ripped open the bag of celery sticks and shoved a few into his mouth.

Penny idly chewed on a carrot, relieved that normal food didn't turn her stomach anymore. It was a major relief to her to see Martin finally eat _something_. It unnerved her that he wasn't taking care of his body, and that he seemed to have a rather fatalistic outlook on life.

"_I don't like you dwelling on him so much, Penny,"_ Hector told her. _"I'm a jealous man, and I promised to protect this human. I don't want to…__**overreact**__ because you get too close to him."_

Penny glared at him. _"I don't feel anything for him, Hector. Maybe I see him as a friend. But he's involved in this because of me, and I feel guilty. If he loses his life during this mess it'd be unbearable. Okay? It's pathetic for you to be jealous over someone I feel sorry for."_

Hector smiled thinly at her. _"Make sure you keep it that way. If Martin says anything to you—"_

"Oh, just shut up!" Penny snapped, throwing her bag of carrots at him.

Martin stared at her blankly. "I-I'm sorry?"

"They're having a psychic conversation," Grace said, continuing to eat her carrots. "It can take a bit to get use to."

Martin laughed, and rubbed at his head again. "That would be nice, to have that sort of telepathy."

"You have no idea," Penny grumbled.

"_Hector."_

Hector stiffened, and stood up. _"Brahm. What is it?"_ he didn't like the edge in the other hunter's voice.

"_It is unfortunate that your lifemate has so many enemies," _Brahm said. _"But the vampire has risen. And…I can feel the vampiress with him."_

Hector hissed involuntarily. _"They're hunting together?"_

"_Yes, most definitely. But…there's more."_

"_More?"_ Hector reached out with his mind to hear his neighbors. There seemed to be a feeling of alarm going on up and down the street. There was the scare at the park from a sniper, but something else. Something…

"_Just a half-hour ago. He's only six—"_

"A child!" Hector said aloud, startling the three humans around him.

"A child?" Penny echoed ominously. "What's going on?"

"_It appears they kidnapped a small boy,"_ Brahm said. _"I've felt a small but erratic heartbeat all over the city. He's still alive, but they're dragging him all over the place as bait."_

"_Having the child with them will slow them down a bit," _Hector thought. _"We must find them and dispose of them before they kill the boy!"_

"Hector!" Penny thumped a fist on his chest hard. "Answer me! What's going on?"

Hector focused on his lifemate. "Sevan has kidnapped a young boy."

"Young boy?" Penny cried out. Behind her, Martin rose from the couch. "Please tell me he's still alive!"

"He is," Hector said, taking her by her shoulders. "But Brahm can't pin his location. I need you to reach out and try and feel a young, erratic heartbeat. See if you can feel the direction it's coming in."

Penny quickly nodded. "Yes, of course! We must save that child immediately!"

"Do you want me to help?" Grace asked.

"I'll be okay, Gracie." And Penny didn't want her sister seeking out the heartbeat just in case Sevan decided to kill the child right then and there. She closed her eyes and opened her senses to hammering heartbeats all around her. Trying to single out the heartbeat of a frightened child was going to be difficult, but she wasn't going to quit until she found him.

_Come on, sweetheart,_ she unconsciously called out to the boy's heartbeat._ Let me find you. We're going to save you…_

It was several long, painful moments before Penny could feel a painfully erratic heartbeat slamming in her mind. It felt like a child was behind this heartbeat. He felt so scared…

Hector reached into Penny's mind, and felt the heartbeat. Most importantly, he could gauge a distance from where they were at. _"Brahm!"_

"_I know. I will go on ahead."_

"I'm going to meet Brahm and head off the vampire," Hector announced. "All of you need to stay here until I come back."

"I can help you—" Penny insisted.

"You'll help me more by staying here," Hector interrupted. "Don't leave this house under _any_ circumstances."

Penny scoffed, and scrubbed a hand over her face. "Sevan's war is with _me_. It's my duty to stop him!"

"No, it's _MY_ duty to stop him. Now don't leave, any of you."

"Be careful," Grace said.

"I…have no idea what's going on," Martin said slowly. "But if a child's been kidnapped, I hope you can rescue him in time."

"Thank you," Hector said. He paused only long enough to brush a kiss against Penny's cheek. _"Don't fight me on this, _sívamet_. We need to rescue the child first and foremost. Then we will deal with Sevan and the vampiress."_

Penny sighed heavily. "…Fine. Do what you want."

Hector didn't spare anymore words as he took the form of mist and took off into the sky. _"I'm on my way, Brahm. I needed to make sure my lifemate was secured."_

"_Understood. I, as the 'other guy' will gladly stay out of these affairs."_

Hector paused._ "So…you heard what Grace said? Don't tell me she offended you."_

"_I am a proud Carpathian warrior,"_ Brahm said harshly. _"I will not stoop so low as to be offended by the words of a __**child**__."_

Despite the severity of the situation, Hector couldn't help but laugh. _"If you say so…"_

* * *

Penny sat down on the couch, her stomach in knots. They had to save the child. She couldn't bear it if another child died because of her!

"_Not because of you,"_ Hector reprimanded her. _"Sevan's actions are not your fault."_

"Everything will be okay," Grace said confidently. "They just kidnapped him a little while ago, right? If they wanted to eat him they would've done it by now. I think they just want us to come out of hiding."

"That's probably true," Martin said. He shook his head. "The Morrison Center and vampires…I'm losing track of who our enemies are!"

"_All _of them," Penny said. "And we have to get rid of all of them if any of us want normal lives."

"Well, I'm more concerned for you two than myself," Martin said. "But I'll continue to help you guys as much as I can. Though, I can't use my telepathy the way Hector and you do. And I can't disappear into thin air…" he laughed again. "Wow. Everything certainly has turned strange, hasn't it?"

"It's _always_ been strange," Penny said sourly. "We're only becoming aware of it now."

"_Up above the world so high…like a diamond in the sky…"_

Penny's head shot up. At the same time, Grace looked up as well and Martin lurched, holding a hand to his head. "W-What?"

"You both heard it too?" Penny gasped. Behind the singing, she could hear the boy's heartbeat once more.

Grace nodded. "Is it the vampire? It sounds sort of like the one who keeps giving us nightmares."

"She's nearby!" Penny shouted, jumping to her feet. She shrugged her gun holster over her shoulders. "The vampiress nearby, and she's taunting us with that child she kidnapped!"

"W-What are you doing?" Martin demanded.

"I have to go! I have to stop her before she kills anyone else!"

"W-W-Wait a minute!" Martin jumped up and started running after her. "This could be a trap, Penny!"

"_Penny, you will NOT leave the house!"_ Hector snapped at her.

Penny ignored them both, and focused her eyes on Grace. "I'll be right back, Gracie. Stay put, okay?"

"…Is this a good idea?" Grace asked.

Penny didn't answer her. She took off out the front door and down the front steps. She could still hear the vampiress's voice fresh in her mind. _I'm coming for you!_

"_Penny, get back in the house!"_

"_Hector, she wants ME! I can feel it! I can lure her out into the open easily!"_

"_I don't care WHO she's after! You're not safe out here, so get back inside the house!"_

Penny ignored him, and continued running down the sidewalk.

Back at the house, Martin cursed violently and rubbed a hand through his hair. "This is such a bad idea! Vampires and the Morrison Center…she can't be alone like this!" he began searching for the gun Penny gave him. "Where did I put it…?"

"Are you going after Penny?" Grace asked calmly.

"Of course I am!" Martin insisted. "I can't let her rush off into danger like that!"

"But if you go out there," Grace pointed out. "Who's going to protect me?"

Martin stilled, and gaped at the child, who stared back at him calmly. Grace was right. If he rushed out of the house like Penny did, then Grace would be left alone. And if something happened to Grace, he wouldn't be able to live with himself.

And Penny and Hector wouldn't let him forget it. "…You're right," he said reluctantly, taking a seat at the couch. "We all can't be running out of here. Hector and Brahm will surely get to her quickly."

"Penny's okay," Grace said. She pressed a hand over her heart. "I can feel it. She feels very upset, but she's okay. She knows how to defend herself, too. And I know I can count on Hector to help her."

Martin laughed lightly. "You really do trust him, don't you?"

Grace shrugged. "His heartbeat feels like Penny's. I know that he'll take care of her. He _has_ to."

"Is that so?"

"Well, he talks to her like he's in some romance novel," Grace said bluntly. "So he'd look stupid if he couldn't do anything."

* * *

Penny stopped briefly to catch her breath, but she had to keep going. She had this terrible feeling inside her chest. Maybe she was walking into a trap. But she didn't care. This vampiress needed to be stopped.

More than anything, she wanted to put a face to the voice that had been tormenting her all these years!

"_Penny, stop this!"_ Hector snapped.

"_Hector, I'm okay!" _she insisted. _"But I can't leave things the way they are!"_ she took off running. _"I have to know! I have to see this woman!"_

"—like a diamond in the sky…"

Penny stopped in her tracks. The fear crept up on her. It was her…it was the vampiress. She was real and she was _close_. And Penny knew she had to stop her!

"_Penny!"_ Hector hollered at her. _"I am close, but Sevan is closing in! Leave them both to me!"_

But Penny wasn't listening. Something…there was a dark feeling in her that accompanied the fear. She couldn't articulate it. And there was that morbid desire that wanted to see, once and for all, who this woman was!

Penny rounded a corner, and was standing in front of a bus-stop. It was then that she saw the vampiress…and she felt the child's heartbeat.

The woman's back was to her, but she didn't seem to be walking anywhere. She wore a beautiful billowing white dress that had incredibly long sleeves. Her hair was dark and long, and it hung down her back. Her arms were held out in front of her, most likely cradling the child she had taken. She simply rocked back and forth where she stood, her head tilted back as she continued to sing. "Twinkle, twinkle, little star…"

It was the same scene from all of Penny's nightmares, come to life. It unsettled her greatly, but she forced herself to remain calm.

"Hey, you!" Penny shouted. She took a step forward and drew her gun. "Drop the child this instant!"

The vampiress abruptly stopped singing. With her head still tilted back she turned her head towards Penny. Her dark hair fell into her face, obscuring it. But something…Penny suddenly felt sick to her stomach. And the fear grew. _Wait a minute…_

The vampiress turned very slowly to face her. Though her dress looked pristine white from the back, her front was streaked with red…covered in _blood_. In her arms was indeed the child she had kidnapped, though he was unconscious. His chest rose and fell with shallow puffs of air.

Penny swallowed thickly, and looked up at the vampiress's face. When she did…for the entire world she regretted it.

"This is not the one," the vampiress spoke in slow words, an inhuman hiss echoing her voice. "Can you guide me to my baby…_Penny_?"

Penny wheezed, as shock overcame her body. Her mouth opened and closed, but nothing came out. Tears quickly sprung to her eyes and spilled down her cheeks. She couldn't move or think. The gun slipped out of her hands and clattered to the ground.

"_Penny," _Hector said, feeling the shock and distress in her body. _"Penny, talk to me please! What is happening?"_

But Penny couldn't respond. She didn't have the strength to.

"You have found her."

A body fell beside the vampiress. Sevan smiled sinisterly at Penny as he slid an arm around the vampiress's shoulders. "Are you in shock, Penny? It _has_ been a long time, hasn't it?"

Penny sputtered, hiccupping on her tears. "God…God, _no_…"

There was a 'whoosh' of air beside her as Hector came to her side. He quickly stepped in front of her, placing his body between his lifemate and Sevan. He didn't focus on the vampiress. "What are you doing, vampire?"

"H-H-Hector!" Penny sputtered out. She grabbed Hector's sleeve with both hands. "Hector…she…she…"

Without taking his eyes off Sevan, Hector took Penny into his arms. He'd never seen her like this before. "What is wrong, _päläfertiil_?"

"_Look at her_!" Penny wailed, jabbing a finger at the vampiress.

"Her?" Hector knew Penny referred to the vampiress. He had dismissed the poor woman before, but now he looked at the vampiress cradling the child like a mother cradles an infant.

He blinked once. Then twice. He quickly looked at Sevan with horror and rage. "You—!"

The vampire's smile deepened. He tilted his head to the side to specifically address Penny. And his words only confirmed the horror of the situation.

"Have you nothing pertinent to say to your _mother_, Penny?"


	14. Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

"_The truth is rarely pure and never simple."_

_- Oscar Wilde_

* * *

Penny's horror was pulsating in his mind. Hector swallowed thickly, trying to maintain focus. "What foul game are you playing, vampire?"

"_Game_?" Sevan looked offended by the suggestion. "I'm not playing any games, hunter. You wanted to see my precious woman, and I present her to you. Say hello, Bianca."

"Hello." The answer came automatically from the mouth…the face that was Bianca McCormick. It was her face…it looked no different than when Penny saw her eight years before. The hair was the same, the body was the same…but her skin was chalky white, and her dark eyes blazed red.

"Bianca died eight years ago," Hector said harshly. "This _thing_ you have before us isn't her!"

"Thing?" the amusement left Sevan's face. "_Thing_? You called her a _thing_?"

Hector was about to speak more, but Sevan's anger took him completely off-guard. He was only using this vampiress; she _was_ a thing to him! So how dare he act offended?

Penny stumbled around Hector, her eyes on the vampiress that looked like Bianca. "M-Mom…that…she…" she pressed a hand over her mouth once more. "_Mom_! It's _you_?"

"_Penny, do not be fooled!"_ Hector spoke to her harshly. _"That creature is not your mother! She has most likely been molded by the vampire's dark powers to look like her! To torment you!"_

Penny looked at him. The tears were still spilling out, and it was the shock and horror of this was that the only thing keeping her from being hysterical. "Hector…"

"This isn't a lie, hunter," Sevan said snidely. "And don't try to delude her otherwise. This beautiful face you see before you is real." He cupped his hand to Bianca's chin. "I claimed her as mine eight years ago, and she's been by my si—"

"SHUT UP!" Penny shrieked. She almost rushed at them, but Hector physically restrained her. "That's not my mother! My mother is _dead_! You're lying!"

"I'm telling the truth," Sevan said coldly. "This is Bianca…this is my _lifemate_."

"_JELÄ KEJE TERÁD_!" Hector shouted, though he continued to restrain Penny. "Light sear you, foul creature! I will make you pay for your lies!"

Sevan only seemed amused by their anger. He leaned over and brushed his lips against Bianca's cheek. "Aren't you happy to see your daughter, Bianca? Granted, she's here to kill you but it's been eight long years. Aren't you pleased to see your daughter grown up?"

"No," Bianca responded.

"No?" Sevan feigned shock and moved away from her. "Why wouldn't you be?"

"Because she _killed me_."

Penny stopped struggling, and she gaped at the vampiress. "…What?"

"You killed me," Bianca said, the venom creeping back into her voice. "You cut my body apart and ripped my baby from my womb. Then you left me to bleed to death on the floor while you _stole_ my child from me." Bianca narrowed her eyes at her. "You _murderer_."

_Murderer_…pain erupted from Penny's chest and she gasped, unable to scream. That _thing_ couldn't be Bianca. It couldn't be her mother. But…but seeing the hate in those familiar eyes…hearing the hate in that _voice_…it was too much for Penny. She bit into her palm and groaned in pain.

"_Foul creature_!" Hector shouted, pushing Penny behind him. "What you have done and are doing is absolutely heinous! Release that child at once!"

"_This_ child?" Sevan asked, stroking the hair of the boy in Bianca's arms. "But Bianca hasn't fed tonight. Must you deny her nourishment? Are you _hungry_, Bianca?"

"…Yes." Bianca slid her gaze away from Penny and looked down at the unconscious child she held. "I want to find it…but I'm so hungry…"

The fangs extended out of the vampiress's mouth and Hector surged forward. "_KÖD_!" he screamed, lunging at the woman.

"Hector!" Penny screamed, unable to help herself.

Before Hector could reach them, a burst of light struck Sevan. The vampire howled in pain, and the force of the blast slammed him into Bianca. The vampiress was taken off-guard, and dropped the child.

Hector scooped the little boy into his arms before he hit the ground. He quickly assessed the boy for any injuries or blood-loss and found neither. _"We got him, Penny. He's going to be all right!"_

"Hector."

Hector looked up as Brahm touched down on the ground beside him. The older hunter was giving him a harsh look. "Why were you conversing with vampires? You needed to focus your energy on saving the child and then destroying them."

"I know," Hector said gravely, looking over his shoulder at Penny. "But the woman…"

Bianca was kneeling over Sevan, assessing the searing wound in his side. She lifted her head and glared at them. "Why have you done this?"

"We don't need to explain ourselves to you, woman," Brahm said harshly. He raised his hand towards her. "You have suffered long enough under the influence of this vampire. I will end your suffering."

Bianca stared at him without any fear. She slowly closed her eyes and ducked her head. "You will kill me before I see my _baby_?"

"_She's dying…she has to get out! Save her!"_

Something unhinged inside of Penny. "BRAHM!" she screamed. "Don't hurt my mom!"

Brahm's face remained expressionless, but his hand flinched. "…_Mom_?"

"Penny—" Hector began.

Bianca suddenly lunged forward, grabbing Brahm by his wrist. With a guttural, inhuman hiss her fangs extended once more and she sank her teeth into his hand.

"_O JELÄ PEJE TERÁD, EMNI_!" Brahm screamed. He struck Bianca, and the vampiress flew several feet away. "Sun scorch you, woman! I will show you _no mercy_!"

Bianca's attack on Brahm was enough to snap Hector out of it. He shoved the unconscious child into Penny's arms and surged forward, aiming for Sevan. "Prepare to die, vampire!"

Sevan laughed, flecks of dark blood spilling over his chin. "Not quite."

There was a sudden burst of energy around Sevan. Black tentacles rose from the ground and shot towards the sky. Hector cursed violently, and jumped back. _A trap!_

Brahm shook out his injured hand as he raised his free one. _"Fire, of pure being and light/Sear the darkness in this fight/Cleanse the area of this being/Remove it all from eyes that have seen."_

Fire erupted from his hand and shot out, engulfing the tentacles that were swinging around in the air. A hideous scream of pain rattled in their ears, as though the tentacles themselves had been given life. Hector ignored the screaming, and focused on the vampire caught in the middle. He dropped to his knees and pressed his hands into the ground. _"Soil of the rich earth/Feel the monster and the foulness he gave birth/Eliminate the threat to your body/Of the creature with intentions shoddy."_

The earth seemed to open up beneath Sevan, latching onto his ankles like a pair of shackles. The vampire screamed—surprise? rage?—and struggled against the hold as his tentacles disintegrated all around him and he found himself at the mercy of two hunters.

Penny hung onto the child, her mind numb. It was too much…everything that was happening. She thought she was a strong person, but…

"Penny."

Penny stiffened, and she turned to look to her right. Bianca was sitting beside her. Her mother—no, _no_! This couldn't be her mother!

The _vampiress_ was looking at her calmly, despite her blazing red eyes. Brahm's blood was still wet on her lips. "Penny," the vampiress repeated. "Can you take me to her?"

Penny was shaking. So much scared her, but she'd never been so terrified in her life. "Wh…What?" she asked meekly.

Bianca leaned forward. Penny hissed in alarm, but the vampiress only calmly leaned her head against Penny's shoulder. "I've never held her. I've only carried her in my womb. I've missed out on eight years of her life." She leaned back up to look at Penny. Her eyes looked like they were in pain. "Can't you take me to her? _Please_?"

Penny's nostrils flared, and her world fell apart. This _thing_…Bianca…she _smelled the same_. Her mother died all alone eight years ago, but Penny always remembered what she smelled like. Children often did, and a mother's scent was a source of comfort.

It wasn't enough that the vampiress had Bianca's face, her voice, and spoke about things that happened to Bianca. But this smell…there was _no way_ Sevan could replicate a scent only a child would recognize in their mother.

"M…Mom?" Penny said very quietly. The tears welled up in her eyes once more as she regarded this woman with absolute shock. Bianca had died. Penny had _felt_ her heart stop.

And yet Bianca was right there beside, her…as a _vampiress_.

Bianca smiled, and reached out. Penny flinched, but she caressed her daughter's cheek. "After everything you've done to me, Penny, you _owe_ it to me to give me my baby."

Penny let out a painful wheezing noise, hugging the boy to her chest. "Mom…"

"_Get away from her_!"

Bianca withdrew from Penny then as Hector flew to his lifemate's side. The vampiress took a few steps back, until she was swept up into someone's arms.

"It's been fun," Sevan hissed at them. "But the sun will rise soon and we _must_ get to sleep!"

"Get back here!" Brahm shouted. He was still nursing his hand and rushing forward as Sevan and Bianca disappeared. "_Köd alte hän_! Darkness curse it! I'll go after those creatures, and—"

"Brahm, don't risk it!" Hector warned him. "Your hand is reacting strangely to the bite! She may have poisoned you!"

Brahm glared at him. "We would've been able to take care of the both of them if your woman hadn't come running out here like that!"

"You will not speak about my lifemate like that!"

"Hector…"

Both hunters turned back to Penny. She was shaking violently, and looked incredibly pale. Hector had never seen her so emotional before. "Hector…that was my mom."

"_Sívamet_, it wasn't—"

"Her _smell_ is the same," Penny shot back. "There is no way Sevan would be able to replicate her smell like that! That was MY MOM!"

Brahm slowly looked at Hector. "She…she may be right."

Hector didn't like to think about it. He grabbed Penny by her shoulders. "We don't know for sure—"

"_I_ know," Penny sputtered. "I _know_ it's her! I-I killed her, Hector! I cut Grace out of her body and left her to die! And Sevan…I just _know_ his heartbeat has been stalking us all this time! He probably found her and turned her vampire with his vampire blood! Oh…" she wrung a hand through her curly. "Oh, my God. What have I done? My mom's a vampire, and _she's_ the one who's been killing all these children! And I…if I didn't…**I DID THIS TO HER**!" she shrieked, hysteria bubbling to the surface.

"Penny!" Hector invaded her mind and tried to eliminate all of her negative feelings. "Penny, this isn't your fault! You didn't turn your mother into a vampire!"

"But I LEFT HER!" Penny wailed. "I left her to die while I ran away with Gracie! I left her to the mercy of that vampire! This…" she gulped and began wailing. "This is all _my fault_!"

Hector crushed her against him, feeling her wails against his chest. He flooded her mind with his love and comfort. _"_Sívamet_…_sívamet_…please don't do this to yourself. You are not at fault for any of this. There was nothing different you could've done. If you had left your mother alone as she was, both Grace and her would've died. And her injuries were fatal. Even if you had taken her with you, she still would've died. She told you to leave her behind. You were only eighteen, Penny. There wasn't anything else you could've done."_

Because he was pushing away her negative feelings, Penny's hysteria began to subside. But there was very little Hector could do about the pain in her heart. _"Penny…"_ he kissed the top of her head. _"Hän ku vigyáz sívamet és sielamet."_

It was an intimate expression of his feelings Hector hadn't used before. He was taken off-guard by the feeling behind his words, even if Penny didn't really understand them. But her pain was _his_ pain. And he couldn't stand to see her suffer endlessly like this.

"Hector."

Hector looked up to see Brahm kneeling beside him. The older hunter looked less than pleased with him, and Hector couldn't blame. His weakness to Penny's grief allowed for Sevan and…his _companion_ to get away. "Let me see your hand," Hector said. "I can—"

"There is no infection," Brahm said, slowly leaning over to lick his wound. "I just checked my body. My hand was in pain because she bit through some nerves. I will need fresh blood, and to go to ground. Then I should be better."

Hector reluctantly let Brahm go and offered his wrist. "Take freely what I offer. It is my fault you were bitten, after all."

Brahm didn't argue with that. He quickly drank Hector's blood to help speed up the healing process. Brahm didn't look at Penny, who sat destitute on the ground. _"I think…we will need reinforcements with this."_

"_This won't happen again, Brahm," _Hector said defensively. _"I wasn't expecting the vampiress to be my lifemate's mother. I think I can be forgiven for that shock."_

"_We must stop them quickly, before they kill anyone else,"_ Brahm retorted. _"You cannot be ruled by emotions, Hector. If we can raise another hunter to come to us, then we might get the assistance that we need."_

Hector ran a hand through Penny's hair comfortingly, but his eyes were on Brahm. _"You…you mentioned you fought a master vampire with three hunters not too long ago. Who were they?"_

"_Michelo Hexum, Gray __Llawhaden…and Angel Kushnir."_ Brahm said the final name with a great amount of reluctance.

"Is there any way we can summon any or all of these hunters here?" Hector asked aloud.

"Gray was injured during the fight with the vampire and is resting," Brahm said, looking at their surroundings suspiciously. "When I last spoke to Michelo, he had told me _something_ was calling him to the West, and I believe he went to Asia."

"Then how about Angel? We can—"

"No."

Hector blinked in confusion. "Why not?"

"I refuse to summon Angel to me," Brahm said harshly. "He will do more harm than good."

Hector felt a little uncomfortable. "He has turned, then?"

Brahm shook his head. "_Hardly_. But he is reckless and full of anger. He is…_quite_ on the fringe, and everyone around him suffers for it. Last I spoke to him, he went south of here. I would rather not meet him again."

Hector wasn't use to a hunter whose darkness was so profound that affected his personality in such a way. Especially when he was unchanged. "But—"

"We can find better allies than him," Brahm interrupted. "Let us contact Tariq and see if they're any other hunters in the region."

Hector didn't want to argue the issue anymore. "Before we do that, let's find this child's parents and return him. After we erase his memory, of course."

"I will go to ground to finish healing," Brahm said, standing up. "Next time, make sure your woman stays put or else we'll find more trouble than biting."

"Come back to the safe house—" Hector offered.

But Brahm shook his head. "I am better off resting by myself out in the open. I will go with you when you deliver the child, and when you drop your lifemate back at the house. But I must feed one more time before resting." He looked off into the night. "The vampire is injured, and the vampiress is vulnerable without him. They will not hunt anymore tonight."

There were so many things about this that he didn't like. It was reprehensible that the vampire turned Bianca when she was so on the fringe of death. And Penny had come face-to-face with her mother.

And her vampiress mother blamed her for everything.

Erasing the boy's memory had been easy. The child had a frightening night, as Hector saw from his memories. He had gone to bed like a good boy when he heard singing outside his window. When he opened his window, Bianca was standing underneath it, singing to him hypnotically. Sevan's magic hid the blood that had splattered all over Bianca's white dress, and she glowed in the night like some sort of fairy princess.

It was absolutely vile. Hector's stomach turned as he assessed the child's memories, making absolutely certain nothing had happened to him. The child had been entranced by Bianca, and with her gentle command he climbed out of his window and went to her.

At that moment, the child's mother went to check on him in his room, and her calls to him snapped him out of it. After that it was a whirlwind of fear for the boy, as Sevan and Bianca dragged him all over the city, frightening him with their evil. But…they didn't harm him. They didn't drink his blood or infect him with parasites.

Hector wiped away all traces of the vampire. The mother had witnessed part of the kidnapping, so he instilled a memory inside the child of a stranger abducting him in a car. He was able to open the door, yes, and run out into the night. But then he got tired because he was lost and fell asleep on a park bench.

He found a human who was part of the search party looking for the boy and handed the boy over. He implanted a fake memory of the man finding the child asleep on a park bench, and the man hurried off to reunite the child with his parents.

There. That was taken care of. But it was Penny that was causing Hector the most worry. His lifemate had been silent and indifferent to everything ever since Sevan and Bianca fled. He knew that the revelation of the vampiress had shocked Penny deeply, and Hector didn't blame her. He tried to imagine himself in her shoes, and if it had been his own mother who was a vampiress. He could relate to her in that sense, in that she would ask them not to kill Bianca. Hector was certain he wouldn't act any different.

"I must go now," Brahm said as they reached the safe house. "I will feed and then track the vampire once more and choose my resting place as close to his as I can. Please contact me if anything happens."

"I will," Hector said. He knew that Brahm was angry with Penny over what happened, but Brahm didn't understand Penny's family situation. When the vampiress accused Penny of killing her own mother, Hector could feel the pain in her heart. Penny genuinely felt that she had committed a heinous crime against Bianca. He remained a constant presence in her mind, trying to drive away her pain and sadness. It worked in that she wasn't hysterical anymore, but it wasn't enough to cheer her up.

As they entered the house, Grace and Martin rushed over to them. "What happened?" Grace demanded, looking at her sister. "Are you okay, Penny?"

Penny stared at Grace in silence for several long moments. Without saying a word, she ran passed her little sister and tore upstairs.

"What happened?" Martin asked uneasily. "I-I've been hearing strange things…"

"We were unable to stop the vampire," Hector said impatiently, wanting to go to Penny's side. "Brahm was bitten, but he should be okay…"

He trailed off when he felt a tug on his arm. He looked down to see Grace staring up at him, her usual calm eyes now full of anger. "What's going on? What's wrong with my sister? Why does she look like she wants to cry?"

Hector was once again put off by Grace's lack of tact, even though it was all out of her love and concern for Penny. But looking down at Grace; this innocent child who knew nothing of danger, and had never met her mother…Hector knew that when Penny saw her sister, she felt more of the guilt for the current situation with Bianca.

And she was undoubtedly wondering _how_ they were going to explain this to the child.

"_After everything you've done to me, Penny, you owe it to me to give me my baby."_

Hector froze, and stared at Grace in horror. Grace's face twisted up. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

Hector knelt down and grabbed Grace by her small shoulders. "_Sisar_, has anyone tried to contact you? Have you heard any female voices in your head?"

Grace blinked very slowly. The anger ebbed away from her sage like eyes. "No, no one's tried to contact me. Why?"

"If anyone does," Hector said. "If a woman, or creature, or _anything_ speaks to you claiming to be your mother, tell me _immediately_. Do you understand me?"

"…Sure," Grace said slowly. "But why would anyone claim to be my mother? I only have one Mom and she's dead."

Hector bit down on his lower lip before he said anything he would regret. Penny would never forgive him if he just blurted out the truth like that. "Just…keep that in mind, Grace."

"…Female voices?" Martin asked slowly. He motioned to Hector. "Can I talk to you for a moment?"

"Fine," Hector said, releasing Grace and moving off to the side to speak with Martin privately. "What is it, human?"

Martin stared at him for a moment before he laughed lightly. "Martin is fine, Hector."

"What is it?" Hector repeated impatiently.

"A few days ago," Martin said. "When I had one of my headaches, I heard a strange voice. I'm certain it was a woman's voice, but it didn't sound human—"

Hector grabbed him by his collar. "Why didn't you tell us earlier?"

"I-I dismissed the voice as something odd," Martin stammered. "I never made the connection about it mattering to us until you asked Grace if she's heard any weird voices."

"What did the voice say?"

"I-I don't remember the whole sentence, but something about searching for a baby."

Hector delved into Martin's mind. It was a terrible risk, because he couldn't control his psychic powers. Especially since they suspected someone tampered with his memories. But Hector ignored the chaos inside Martin's head long enough to narrow in on the memory Martin had conjured up of the voice.

"_**...Baby. My baby. Tell me where the baby is."**_

Hector pulled out of his minds, the words still rattling inside of his mind. That definitely sounded the same as the vampiress they had encountered…it was Bianca's voice. It had been a fragmented message, though. Martin hadn't been the intended target of the words, but his haywire powers picked up on it anyways.

Hector slowly looked at Grace. Bianca kept asking for her baby…and she scorned Penny for 'stealing' her child. Then…was it _Grace_ that Bianca was after?

Grace stared back at him with irritation. "I know you dismiss me as a child, and you're not going to tell me anything. But _what_ is wrong with my sister? I have a right to know!"

Hector remembered his forlorn lifemate upstairs, and felt guilty for abandoning her in her time of need. He went back over to Grace and gave the child a quick hug. "Leave Penny to me, Grace. She had a terrible shock tonight and will need some time to adjust."

"I can help—" Grace began.

"You certainly can, but _I_ must be the one to help her now. Trust in me, _csitri_."

Grace relaxed, but not very much. "I've never seen my sister look like that before, not even when we've had to flee. If you can help her…please hurry." Grace ducked her head. "She's strong for my sake, but she can't hide from me. She's been hurting for so long, and I don't want her to hurt anymore."

"She won't, _Sisar_," Hector promised her. "I won't stop until she's finally at peace…and the same with you."

"Martin made some food," Grace said suddenly. "Should you take her some?"

"…Not right now." Hector kissed her on the cheek and hurried upstairs to finally meet Penny.

Martin smiled at her. "You're very good to your sister, Grace."

Grace shrugged. "If I cry and complain, it won't solve anything and would just be a bother. I want this to be over with once and for all."

"I understand." But Martin was uneasy. Why did Hector want to know so much if someone contacted Grace? The woman he had heard…was she somehow after Grace?

* * *

Penny had drawn her knees up to her chest, and her back was pressed into the wall. Her forehead was resting on top of her knees. She didn't react when Hector entered the room, or when he sat down beside her on the bed. "_Sívamet_." He brushed a kiss across the top of her head. "I'm sorry for leaving you alone. I needed to reassure Grace."

Penny said nothing for a long moment. Hector slid into her mind as his arms slid around her, flooding her with love and comfort. "Please talk to me, _päläfertiil_. Do not keep this to yourself."

Penny swallowed thickly. It was so difficult to form words. Feeling Hector's presence in her mind was comforting, but it didn't do much to quell the pain in her heart. "W…When…" she finally spoke, though she didn't raise her head. "When I was younger, Mom was the most beautiful thing to me."

Hector relaxed very slightly, relieved that Penny was opening up to him on her own. He gently pulled her into his arms. "Go on."

"She was physically beautiful, but she also had beauty and kindness in her. Towards the end she began to lose it, because the stress of everything was too much for her. But…I couldn't really blame her.

"For the longest time, the last image I had of Mom in my mind was when I…" Penny turned her head into Hector's chest, and she curled her fingers into his shirt. "When I _cut her open_ and took Grace out. She kept telling us to get away, run…but I left her there." her body began to shake as the tears came once more. "She suffered so _much_, and none of it was her fault! She _heard_ my dad die! She was tortured while she was pregnant with Grace! Then I…I cut her open and left her _**to die**_! I left her to the mercy of Sevan! And he…Mom is a _MONSTER_ now because of me! What am I going to tell Gracie? How can I ever look her in the eyes again when I've done so much _damage_? When I did such a thing to our own mother?"

Penny's pain radiated through Hector. He clung to her as she sobbed into his chest. He knew the feeling of loss. He'd abandoned Fatima in a crucial time, and she died because of it. So many hunters he had called friends turned vampire, and he'd been forced to kill them.

Now Bianca was a vampiress killing children. They needed to kill her, not only to keep humans safe but to end her ongoing suffering. She'd been a vampire all these years, and yet she hadn't rotted away like so many of the undead did. Sevan probably had a hand in it, but it all made no sense. Why had Sevan come after the girls? Did he genuinely believe himself to be Bianca's lifemate?

Hector looked down at Penny. Even with his comfort his lifemate was in terrible pain. He tilted her head up so that she was looking up at him. Tears were spilling out freely, and her expression was twisted in agony. He leaned down and captured her lips.

The kiss took Penny off-guard, and she didn't react for a moment. Hector buried both hands into her hair and swiftly deepened the kiss, turning her head to allow himself easier access to her mouth. She was stunned by the sudden heat that flashed through her body, overshadowing her pain. Unable to help herself she clung to him, returning the kiss enthusiastically.

It wasn't the right time. She was in pain and needed comfort. But with that simple kiss Hector was unable to hold back any longer. Longing ached through his body, and he wanted…no, _needed_ to finally complete their ritual. He wouldn't take her blood, but her body…

He pulled Penny towards him, positioning her to straddle his lap as he broke the kiss. Penny gasped as he began kissing along her throat, not in a way to take her blood in a way that was overtly sexual. Soft noises of pleasure escaped her mouth as she slid her arms around his shoulders and simply hung on. She hadn't ever let a man touch her. She never _trusted_ anyone enough. The grief of the reality of what happened to Bianca was too much for her, but Hector was also too much. All he had to do was kiss her, and touch her slightly, and it awakened so many unfamiliar feelings in her body. Feelings she was starting to _crave_.

Mindful that Grace and Martin were still in the house, Hector set out a command that they leave them alone and locked the door firmly as he pushed Penny down against the pillows. He knew he could simply think away all of her clothing and take her quickly, but he didn't want to scare her. She'd been through enough already, and what she needed was more comfort, not anything abnormal.

_But she's had _nothing_ normal in so long._

Hector took his time. He carefully removed her shirt and felt the skin underneath. It was so soft…he felt her reluctance when he reached for her bra, so he left that alone for the time being. He cupped her breasts gently in both hands while his mouth explored her abdomen, tasting her flesh in such an intimate way that made his body tighten even more with need. It was further fueled by the reactions she gave to him. The way her body twitched and arched under the newfound sensations, and the gasps and moans she made…it was too much to take.

When Hector reached for her belt, Penny's hands shot out and grabbed his wrists. "Wait."

Hector looked at her. "Do you want to stop, _sívamet_?" his body protested strongly of this notions, but Hector knew better than to push the matter if Penny wasn't ready.

Their minds were tightly linked. Penny was stunned by the need she felt from him. It made her intimidated and self-conscious. She didn't know what was compelling her to just go along with this. Was this because of their bond, or something deeper?

Penny swallowed thickly, and released his hands. "…No."

Hector gave her a reassuring smile, and carefully removed the rest of her clothing. With her pants gone, Penny was less self-conscious about her bra and Hector was able to ask it off, leaving his lifemate naked before him for the very first time. He sucked in a sharp breath as he took in her beauty. She was everything he could ever imagine and much more. And she was _his_…

Hector quickly thought away his own clothing, but Penny quickly sat up as he became abruptly naked before her. "H-Hector!"

"Don't fear me, Penny. I won't hurt you." Hector gently took her hands and pressed them against his bare chest. "Touch me, _sívamet_. Know my body as you rightfully should."

And he would know _hers_. Penny's hands shook against his unyielding chest, and her breathing was a little ragged. Slowly…slowly she calmed down. Hector could feel her heartbeat steady and he slowly let go of her hands. And Penny didn't pull them away.

She looked him over, impressed with his physique. Seeing him like this continued to stir so many things inside her. She leaned forward until her forehead touched his shoulders. Then her hands slid down, over his nipples and the ridges of his toned abdomen, and slid around to his back where she clung to him tightly.

He was moved by her sincerity, even while his body burned from her simple caresses. He cupped her face in his hands and captured her mouth once more, relaying his desire and feelings for her as he possessed her mouth, and eased her back down on the bed.

He had wanted to soothe and comfort her, but he couldn't deny the desire in his body. He kissed her mouth hard and swiftly, leaving her gasping for breath when he pulled away. He pressed gentle kisses onto her face, wiping away her tears with his mouth. The saltiness stuck to his tongue, though it pained him to see her cry. His hands roamed her body freely, cupping her now bare breasts and gently kneading her nipples. Short, gasping noises vibrated at his ear, reminding him that no one had touched her body and everything was so new to her. He was eager to show her more.

Penny arched her head, unable to silence herself as Hector slid down, tongue circling her areola before engulfing her nipple in his mouth. A sharp, pleasant sensation shot through her and she let out a soft cry, digging her fingernails into his shoulders.

Hector felt his teeth begin to extend, as the desire to claim and turn her fully coupled that with wanting to make love to her. But he didn't have her permission with _that_, and he wasn't going to force it on her now. Reluctantly he lifted his head from her breast and kissed her once more, as one of his hand slid downwards, up one bare leg to the knee, and back in again with the fingers curling around her inner thigh.

Penny was startled at the first contact of his fingers with her most intimate part, but Hector's breath was at her ear, gently kissing her and coaxing her as his fingers were. She closed her eyes, but she couldn't ignore their movements. And she found she didn't want to. She moaned, quietly at first but then with increasing volume, as a pleasant heat began to form in her abdomen. His breathing grew ragged with hers as he encouraged her, and his hand moved faster. Her hips lifted off the bed slightly and she shook as a sharp pleasure rocked her body. She cried out, trembling as she climaxed under his touch.

Seeing her beautiful face twisted in ecstasy was too much for Hector. He withdrew his hand from her and leaned over her. "Are you ready, _päläfertiil_?"

Penny slowly opened her eyes as her world came back into focus once more. She focused on Hector, and the lust simmering in his dark eyes. She knew what was coming next, and she was afraid. But, she nodded as she held his gaze. "…Yes."

"I will be careful." He gave her the added reassurance as he opened her body to him. One leg was draped over his arm as he hunched over her body. His eyes were on her face as he leaned in. Hunger was beating at him, but he didn't thirst for blood. He was finally going to be able to complete their lifemate ritual, and be bound in body to Penny as they already were in spirit. It almost didn't seem real to him.

The first touch of him to her almost made Penny jump out of her skin. She arched involuntarily as he began to push inside her body. She made a sharp intake of breath as the searing pain that accompanied it, but she knew it was coming. The pain could hardly compare to everything else that had happened to her, but it felt so deep inside her being. She bit on her lip and clung to Hector as became nestled inside her.

Hector kissed her mouth, loosening the hold of her teeth on her lip as he coaxed her to relax. After a moment, he began to move. Burying one hand in her hair while the other held her leg steady, he started slowly to help her adjust to him. But the feeling of their union was more profound than their physical joining. He could almost feel every cell in his body aching and reaching for Penny. It was a desire he couldn't deny and he picked up momentum.

The pain became a distant memory very quickly. Penny was taken off-guard by the sensation rocking her body. She hung onto Hector tightly, as though she had no other lifeline to hang onto. He was moving over her so fast, and her body began to burn so erotically…she was so new to it, but she was adapting to it quickly too.

Hector groaned throatily in her ear, and kissed her cheek and her lips. She was exquisite…everything he wanted. He had lived so long without a connection to anybody or any_thing_, but now he had it with this precious woman. As he mouth moved over hers once more, he could feel it; the ritual words resurfaced to him as they had when he first gave her blood.

"_Te avio päläfertiilam." _Hector had spoken these words before, but they poured out of him. _"Éntölam kuulua, avio päläfertiilam. Ted kuuluak, kacad, kojed._ _Élidamet andam._ _Pesämet andam._ _Uskolfertiilamet andam._ _Sívamet andam._ _Sielamet andam."_ He continued to move against her body, feeling the fire inside of him to possess her fully. _"Ainamet andam._ _Sívamet kuuluak kaik että a ted."_

The words were having a profound effect on Penny. Her body tingled sharply from where they were joined, but her mind was soft and muddled from the force of his words. _"Ainaak olenszal sívambin. Te élidet ainaak pide minan. Te avio päläfertiilam. Ainaak sívamet jutta oleny. Ainaak terád vigyázak."_

The heat broke through her once more and she almost screamed as she orgasm again, her body trembling against his. She squeezed around him and Hector hissed as his own release snapped through him like a whip.

Gasping for air, they collapsed back onto the bed. Hector pulled Penny into his arms as she breathed heavily against his cheek. He kissed her and flooded her mind again with his love and comfort as a satisfying drowsiness overtook them both. Their problems were far from solved. They had Greene and his Morrison associates to deal with, in addition to Sevan and Bianca. Bianca couldn't be saved as she was unless they killed her, and he knew this hurt Penny deeply.

But…but he was there. He was there with her and they'd finally completed the ritual. They were bound together closer than they had been before.


End file.
